Puppy Love
by TKcloud9
Summary: "Agent Barton," JARVIS's calm voice said, "why is there a small canine in your jacket?" Clint sighed. "Because if I left her out there she was going to die, please don't tell Tony." "Tell Sir what, Agent Barton?" JARVIS asked blandly. When Clint Barton rescued the puppy in the alley, he was not expecting his life to change so drastically. A story of love, adoption, and fluff.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello, all! So, if you've read my Rosie Banner story, you know I'm slowly making stories where each Avenger has a kid. This is Clint's.**

 **Disclaimer: Don't own anything Marvel, only own my OC Allie.**

Clint was the one who spotted the puppy. It was raining hard that day, and there was a miserable wind that cut through all jackets and froze your bones. Clint was walking home from the bakery with three dozen doughnuts, checking alleys as usual, when he saw the little ball of sodden fur, shivering. His keen eyes picked out a black collar, brown fur, and two sad green eyes. His quick pace slowed, and he stopped in front of the puppy. "Hey buddy," he said gently, looking down the dog.

It whined pitifully and let out a little 'woof.' It was shivering so hard, it could barely stand, but it stood, and reached out one little paw to touch his shoe, its little tail wagging weakly.

Clint's heart melted. He pulled a doughnut from the top box and tore off a piece, holding it out to the puppy. He noticed it was a girl pup. "Here you go, girl," he said coaxingly. "Not very nutritional, but it's warm."

The puppy reached out hesitantly, nipped the doughnut, and scampered back a couple paces to chew, tucking itself into a little ball as another freezing blast of wind cut through the alley.

Clint shivered and glanced at the Tower. Only a couple more blocks. He looked back at the puppy. If he left the poor thing here, it would be dead by morning. He sighed and made a choice. "All right, come on. It's not like Tony will actually kill me." He knelt down and reached out for the puppy. "C'mon," he coaxed, holding his hand out for her to sniff.

She sniffed suspiciously, and licked his palm. She woofed again and pushed her head into his palm.

"Good girl," he praised, picking up the puppy. She was small, able to fit in his two hands, and he tucked her into his jacket, zipping it up. She settled into his hold with only a small woof and bopped his chin with her wet nose. Clint smirked. "We've got to sneak in before you can thank me."

He made it to the elevator before someone caught him. "Agent Barton," JARVIS's calm voice said, "why is there a small canine in your jacket?"

Clint sighed. "Because if I left her out there she was going to die, please don't tell Tony."

There was a long pause, and then the elevator began to move upwards. "Tell Sir what, Agent Barton?" JARVIS asked blandly.

Clint grinned. "Thanks, J. I owe you one. Is anyone in the kitchen?"

"Not at present."

"Okay, good." He got off at the common floor, dropped the doughnuts on the table, and went back down to his level. He unzipped his jacket and pulled the puppy out. "Bath time," he said.

The puppy's ears flattened, and she tried to lick his nose.

Clint laughed and carried her into the bathroom. He filled the ridiculously large sink with warm water and placed the pup in it. He wasn't surprised that the puppy practically melted into the warmth of the water. "Nice, isn't it?" he asked, smiling.

He washed her with some shampoo and conditioner and dried her with a thick towel. She was still shivering, and as he was drying her, he noticed the poor puppy was nothing but skin and bones. "Poor baby," he said, wrapping her in a thick sweater of his and plopping the hood over her head.

She gave him an indignant look and started to chew on the corner of the hood. Her teeth weren't very sharp though, so he let her.

"At present there is no suitable dog food in the Tower," JARVIS announced.

"She's too malnourished for solid food, anyway," Clint said critically, "I'm going to give her some water and maybe blend up some chicken soup."

The puppy fairly pounced on the food, drank all the water, ate all the chicken soup, and then passed out on the tile floor, her little tail wagging till the last second.

Clint chuckled and picked her up, wrapping her back in the sweater. "I really should give you a name," he said, stroking the soft brown fur, "your collar is tag less and I can't keep calling you puppy."

The puppy nuzzled his hand and let out a little doggy-huff.

"How about Allie?" he asked. "I mean, I found you in an alley."

Big green eyes blinked open, stared up at him, and a tiny pink tongue licked his hand.

"Allie it is then," Clint decided, kissing the puppy's head. He put her in a corner of the couch to sleep, but as soon as he put her down, Allie started to whine. "What?" he asked.

There was a reason they called them puppy dog eyes.

He picked her up again. The eyes stopped, and she nestled into his arm. "All right, fine," he said, amused. "I won't go to breakfast with the others." He started his coffee machine.

His absence was noticed, however, and Natasha came down to get him twenty minutes later. "Clint, get your lazy- what is that."

"A puppy, Nat." He pulled back a corner of the sweater. "Isn't she cute?"

Not even hardened Russian assassins could resist a sweet ball of fluff with floppy ears. "She's cute," Natasha admitted, smoothing the puppy's head gently. "Where'd you find her?"

"An alley," Clint said. "I named her Allie."

Natasha rolled her eyes. "Punny."

"I thought so." He beamed at her. "JARVIS said I could keep her."

"Permanently?" Natasha asked, raising an eyebrow. "Who's going to take care of her on missions? And you know Tony's going to flip his lid when he finds out you've got a stray dog."

"She's not a stray," Clint protested, "she's totally clean."

Allie suddenly sneezed, her little body spasming in the sweater and her eyes blinking open, startled. She saw Natasha and let out a whine, burying her face in the sweater.

"No, hey, it's okay," Clint cajoled, "Natasha's a friend. She's nice." He shifted Allie and Natasha held out a hand.

Allie sniffed it curiously and licked her fingertip delicately.

"You've been accepted," Clint said, grinning.

Natasha smiled and rubbed the puppy's belly. "I feel so honored," she deadpanned. "She's so thin," she said after a second, her hand pausing on the tiny ribs.

"Yeah," Clint said, re-wrapping his puppy burrito to let Allie sleep. "We'll fix that though."

"Are you seriously going to try and keep this from Tony or are you going to introduce your new baby to the team?" Natasha asked, only partly teasing. She knew her partner's penchant for picking up strays of all shapes and sizes.

"I probably should get it over with, yeah," Clint said, sighing. "All right."

He and Natasha headed to the common floor. Everyone else was already there, eating doughnuts and coffee and talking about Shakespeare in the Park.

"We're going in the summer," Steve decided.

"If you really want to go see Shakespeare I'll fly you to London and we can do the West End," Tony suggested instead.

"Morning Clint," Steve said, pointedly not answering Tony. "What's that?"

Clint straightened, reassured by Natasha's presence flanking him. "My new puppy."

Tony stiffened and pointed at the archer. "I will not have dirty mangy animals in my Tower," he said firmly. "It messes up the circuitry and clogs the air vents. Tell him, JARVIS."

"This puppy does not shed enough to impair systems, sir," JARVIS replied placidly.

Tony stared up at the ceiling, betrayed.

"He's so cute," Steve cooed, reaching out for the bundle on automatic.

"She," Natasha corrected, slipping around Clint to make herself a coffee.

Clint let Steve hold the sweater. "Her name's Allie," he said.

"Hey Allie," Steve said, gently running his fingers over the downy back. "Oh, she's so sweet."

"A creature so tiny is a sight to behold," Thor said, equally mushy-eyed.

Tony was staring at them, horrified. "No, guys, stop, we're not keeping that thing." He looked at Bruce. "C'mon Brucie, don't let a mangy mutt infest our Candyland!"

"You can lock her out of R&D," Bruce said firmly, reaching out to touch a tentative finger to the puppy's little paw. It twitched and he smiled.

Tony groaned. "Traitors, all of you."

Steve held out the puppy. She looked even tinier against Steve's bulk. "C'mon, Tony, she's cute. She's like a little mascot."

"And pet therapy is very helpful for winding down after missions," Clint added.

Tony eyed the puppy like it was a Doom-bot. "No." He pointed at her. "This _thing_ is not-" he faltered as Allie's eyes blinked open and she stared at him. "Staying." He froze as she licked his finger and started to wag her tail. "In the tower," he finished weakly. He sagged against the back of his chair. "Fine. Fine. But take your magic puppy out of the kitchen."

Clint gave Steve a high-five and scooped up his puppy. He wrapped her back up and put her on the couch in the living room. "Stay," he said firmly.

Allie closed her eyes and put her head on her front paws.

"Good girl," he praised, and went to eat breakfast.

"Already trained," Steve observed. "Where'd she come from?"

"The alley two blocks away," Clint said frankly. "Smart, isn't she?"

Tony groaned and held out a credit card. "Go. Buy supplies. And figure out where it's going to do its business. There will be no stains on anything or Pepper will have all our heads. And no chew marks."

Clint smirked. "No problem Stark."

They finished breakfast and Tony made a beeline for his lab.

"Can you watch Allie while I go get stuff?" Clint asked Steve.

"Yeah, no problem."

Clint clapped him on the shoulder. "Cool. Be back in a bit."

Steve glanced over at the puppy. She was staring at the elevator with soulful eyes. He went over and sat on the couch. "He'll be back," he assured the puppy, feeling silly for talking to an animal like it could understand him.

She tugged her way out of the burrito sweater and climbed up on his lap, resting her head on his stomach to look up at him with limpid green eyes.

"Hi," he said, amused.

"Woof." She licked her nose and stared at him some more.

He pet her while he watched a morning news show, and during commercials, he play-wrestled her very, very gently. She loved it, and nibbled at his fingers happily. But as soon as the program started again, she would sit quietly on the couch and wag her tail.

Clint was back by the end of the program, arms full of bags. "Well someone's gonna be spoiled," he said, snickering.

Steve had the puppy cradled on his chest like a baby, rubbing her belly. "She's really well-behaved," he said. "She only makes noise during commercials."

"A TV dog," Clint said, surprised. "Cool." He set his bags down on the living room table. "I brought puppy dry food, bowls, a doggy bed, and a lot of diapers. Also, look." He held up a small fake-grass square.

"Genius," Steve said dryly.

"Yeah. I'm going to put them both in my bathroom, since it's huge, and a diaper over here in the corner, since she's going to be here a lot." He brought over a small chew toy. "And, a duck, because you can't chew on anything else."

Allie eyed the soft toy contemplatively, and squirmed out of Steve's hold. She accepted the duck and chewed on it. She looked up at Clint and yipped, and then went back to nuzzling the duck.

"Did she just thank you?" Steve asked, snickering.

Clint smirked and fondled her ears. "Good puppy."

Steve went away to get started on his work for the day, and Clint put on a video game. Today was a slow day, and he could keep an eye on Allie at the same time.

Bruce wandered into the common room an hour later to find Clint on the floor, building an empire in Minecraft. Allie was walking back and forth in the living room, the duck in her mouth. "What are you doing?" he asked the puppy curiously.

"She's been doing that for the last twenty minutes," Clint said, shrugging. "I have no idea."

Bruce got himself a snack and decided to take a small break. He sat on the couch and extended a hand to Allie. "C'mere, Allie."

The puppy yipped and raced over to him, nuzzling his ankles and placing the duck on his shoes.

He scooped her up onto the couch with him and she scrambled onto his lap, exposing her belly. "You just want cuddles don't you," he said, obliging with a belly rub. He felt himself relaxing the longer he pet the puppy, and decided to try pet therapy more often. The Hulk was very calm inside him, almost completely silent.

Allie stared up at him adoringly and wagged her tail.

He pet her for a few more minutes and then reluctantly picked her up. "Back to work," he said, placing her on the floor. "Thank you for the break."

Allie yipped at him and raced over to Clint to curl up next to his leg.

Throughout the day Clint was amused to see each of the remaining Avengers wander casually into the living room and pick an excuse to play with the puppy. Even Tony came down, curiosity piqued by Bruce's peaceful experience.

"So what's your secret?" Tony asked the puppy, lifting her up so they were eye to eye.

She licked his nose.

"Ew." He put her down and wiped his face. "That's disgusting." She snuck her head under his hand, and he patted her gently. "You're soft though," he mused, a tiny smirk on his face as the puppy wriggled happily. "And kind of cute."

She climbed into his lap and put her paws on his chest. She dropped her head forward onto the arc reactor and let out a small whine.

"Yeah, you can probably hear it running, can't you?" he asked, rubbing her tiny head.

She stayed like that for a few minutes and then curled up in his lap. He picked up his tablet and with the other hand pet her absently.

To Clint's infinite amusement, though he showed nary a speck of it on his face, Tony stayed on the couch petting Allie until Pepper came back from the office. "Hi Pepper," Clint said casually.

"Hi Clint. Tony," Pepper said cautiously, wondering why he wasn't getting up to greet her.

"Mrs. Stark," he replied, giving her a wink. They'd gotten married in a quiet ceremony a few months after the Battle of New York, but they'd kept separate surnames to keep things professional. The only ones that knew were the Avengers, Fury, and Pepper's parents.

Pepper walked closer and gasped. "Is that a puppy?"

"Yep. Clint found her. This is Allie." Tony held her up proudly, like Rafiki with Simba. "Say hi, Allie."

Allie held out a paw, tail wagging madly.

"She's so cute," Pepper gushed, shaking the proffered paw, delighted when Allie licked her finger tip. "Let me hold her." She took the puppy from Tony and cuddled her in her arms. "She's so small and thin," she said, worried.

"We rescued her," Tony said.

"AHEM."

"Clint rescued her," Tony amended.

Pepper kissed the puppy's soft head. "She's adorable. Are we really going to keep her?"

"Yep," Tony said. "But if she makes a mess blame Clint."

That night Clint took Allie back to his room and plopped her on the floor to play while he showered. "Time for bed," he announced, once he'd gotten out. He put her on the puppy bed next to his bed, and turned off the lights.

A low whimper came from the floor.

"No way," he said. "Dogs sleep on the floor."

There was a gentle tug on the end of the sheet.

He rolled over to look, and found Allie tugging at the sheet, her eyes wide and beseeching. She whimpered again, and he sighed. "Fine." He pulled her onto the bed and she curled up on his chest. "I see how it is," he said. She didn't weigh enough to hamper him, so he closed his eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter has some angst. Warning: mentions of child neglect. Nothing explicit. Also loads of fluff to offset the sad.**

He slept like a log until his alarm went off the next morning, and found that Allie had migrated to lay in the curve of his waist, her head resting on his ribs and moving up and down as he breathed. "So cute," he whispered, rubbing her head.

She blinked up at him, and rolled over, snuffling into a pillow.

"Yeah, me too," he said, "but I've got things to do today." He left her on the bed while got dressed, and then took her down to the common room. The only one there was Thor. "Hey, man, could you watch the dog? I don't want to bring her down to the training floor."

"Of course," Thor said magnanimously. He scooped the pup off the floor and tucked her into the crook of his elbow. "We shall have a great day of fun, won't we?"

Allie yipped and wagged her tail.

Clint smirked and left them to play.

As soon as Clint was gone Thor placed Allie on the table in front of him, his playful demeanor gone. "Now then," he said sternly, "what are you, really?"

The puppy whimpered and tucked her tail under her, curling up against an oncoming blow.

Thor's expression softened. "I won't harm you," he said gently, reaching out to stroke her ear softly. "I merely wish to know what you are."

She whimpered.

"You are not merely a cute ball of fluff," he said. "You are far too intelligent to be a Midgardian canine, and you have not used the normal canine methods of waste removal. I checked the times of bathroom usage. Somehow, you've managed to use the toilet without alerting anyone else. If you really are a dog, then never mind. But if you are not, you are taking advantage of the Avengers' affection and I will not stand for it."

Allie stared at him, and he stared at her. It was a standoff: soulful green eyes versus stern blue ones. Except she was trembling and he was not.

"If I may interrupt, sir," JARVIS said, after a moment. "Allow me to clarify the situation."

"Please do," Thor said, leaning back slightly, but keeping an eye on the puppy.

JARVIS pulled up a holographic screen showing the inside of Clint's bathroom. "I sensed unregistered movement last night at 12:06 and turned off the privacy screen inside the bathroom, for the puppy's safety," he narrated, as a tiny puppy scampered into the tiled bathroom. "This is what happened."

The tiny holographic puppy bypassed the doggy-area and went straight to the toilet. And then on screen, before Thor's very eyes, the puppy transformed into a small, painfully thin four-year-old with green eyes and lanky brown hair, wearing a ragged blue dress. She shivered hard, once, and climbed up on the toilet to do her business. She washed her hands, and then on-screen JARVIS spoke. "Excuse me, little miss."

The four-year-old girl froze and flinched, twisting wildly to look for the voice. "Pwease don't tell on me," she begged, wrapping her arms around herself. Tears began to spill down her hollow face. "Pwease, pwease, don't tell, Mr. Jarvis, please, I, I was just, _hungry_ -"

"It's all right, little miss, you're not in trouble," JARVIS said soothingly. "You are a mutant?"

Allie bobbed her head. "I can change, shapes," she said haltingly, wiping her tears with a tiny fist. "I, my mommy, she was scared of me so I ran away. It was so cold, and Mr. Clint was so nice, and the Avengers were here and they so nice and I just wanted to be a puppy because no one hurts puppies, pwease don't tell on me."

"I won't," JARVIS promised. "When you realize that they will not harm you, and when you feel comfortable telling them, then you may tell them. But if they figure it out, I will help you."

"Pwomise?" the little girl whispered.

"I promise," JARVIS replied gravely.

"Thank you Mr. Jarvis," she said, and morphed back into a puppy. She exited the bathroom and the camera tracked her back to a snoring Clint's side, where she curled into a ball and slept.

The holographic screen collapsed, and Thor turned his attention back to Allie. To his surprise, the puppy was no longer there, and the small, frail four-year-old was sitting on the table, arms wrapped around her knees and tears in her eyes. "You are a shapeshifter," he said flatly.

She bowed her head in a solemn nod. "I'm sowwy," she whispered, sniffling.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, child," he replied gently, scooping her off the table and into his arms. He hugged her until the tension in her thin frame eased and she relaxed, hot tears wetting his shoulder. "Hush now," he urged. "No harm has been done."

"You won't make me leave?" she asked fearfully.

"No," he promised, "we won't make you leave. You did the right thing coming to us for help, little one." He smoothed her hair, almost as soft as her puppy-self's fur. "What's your real name, child?"

"Don' have one," she sniffed, her voice muffled in his shoulder. "My mommy never gave me one cuz," she started to cry again, "she didn't wike me."

Thor's grip on her tightened, angry at the parent who'd neglected her child simply for having a gift. "Do you like the name Allie?" he asked, redirecting the conversation.

A nod. "'S pretty."

"Then your name will be Allie," he decided. He leaned back to see her face. "How long have you been by yourself, Allie?"

"A, a long time," she sniffled. "Days and days."

"Do you remember where you lived before?" he asked.

"New Haven," she replied.

"Your address, Miss Allie?" JARVIS asked.

Her eyes widened and she shook her head, scrambling off of Thor's lap and away from him. "No, no, pwease don't make me go away, pwease, I want stay here, I be good, pwease-" She started to hyperventilate.

Thor scooted out of his chair and knelt down in front of her. "Allie, Allie listen to me," he said firmly, raising his voice over the child's hysteria, "we won't take you back. I swear on the power of Mjolnir we will not take you back to that woman. But you have to calm down, or you will make yourself sick. Can you do that?"

She stopped breathing altogether and stared at him, round-eyed. "You pwomise?" she asked, shuddering.

"I promise," he said. "You will be safe here."

She started to cry again, and Thor didn't hesitate to scoop her up in a warm embrace. He carried her to the living room and sat down with her in his lap, letting her cry into his chest. "It is okay," he soothed, rubbing her back. "You're safe here. No one is going to harm you or take you away. I promise. You're okay."

Her tears finally ran out and she settled into his chest, the occasional sniffle causing her to shudder. She blinked languidly a couple times, exhaustion settling in.

He pulled a blanket over her and let her fall sleep. "Poor child," he murmured, brushing the hair off her forehead.

"Shall I alert the others to gather in the kitchen?" JARVIS asked quietly.

"Yes please, JARVIS." Thor carefully placed Allie on the couch and tucked the blanket around her, concealing her behind a pillow. He went to the kitchen and started another pot of coffee. He had a feeling everyone else was going to need it.

They all gathered in about two minutes, and Clint asked suspiciously, "Where's Allie?"

"Don't tell me," Tony said, irritated. "You lost her."

"I did not lose her," Thor replied. "I discovered what she really is."

"I was thinking half Scottish terrier half something else," Clint said.

Thor almost smirked, but he shook his head instead. "She is a mutant," he announced quietly.

They all stared at him. "What?" Steve asked.

"The child, Allie, is a mutant."

"Child?" Clint echoed, his voice rising. "What are you talking about? It's a _puppy_ , Thor."

"Shhh," he stressed, glancing into the living room. "She's sleeping."

"What the-" Clint marched over to the couch and whipped the blanket off. His jaw dropped. "No way."

The others piled up behind him and stared at the sleeping child on the couch. She slept the same way the puppy had - curled up into a ball and her head resting on her folded hands.

"It's a _kid_!" Tony said, a bit loudly, and Allie flinched in her sleep.

"I told you to be _quiet_ ," Thor whispered, taking the blanket from Clint and placing it over the child again, smoothing her hair till she settled. He ushered them back into the kitchen area.

"How did you find out?" Steve asked quietly.

"I felt there was something strange about her," Thor said. "She was far too intelligent to be a puppy, and she has not eaten from the dog food or used any of the dog waste areas laid out for her. And last night, JARVIS discovered her secret when she turned into a girl again to use the toilet."

JARVIS replayed the section of footage for all six of them, and Thor added his previous conversation with Allie.

They were all stunned, except Natasha. "Of course she would go to the Avengers for help," she said matter-of-factly. "She's a smart little one, and she used her powers to appeal to the weakness of almost all humans, even me, to get to a safe place. If I was in her position, I would've done the same thing."

"But what do we do with her?" Clint asked, still in shock. "I can take care of a puppy, not a _kid_."

"At least you won't have to be on pooper-scooper duty," Tony said snidely.

"Shut up Stark," Clint said, rubbing his forehead.

"We can't just give her to Child Services," Bruce said quietly. "With her abilities and her history of abuse, she wouldn't last a week in a random civilian's house."

"I promised her that we would not make her go back to her mother," Thor warned. "I will not break that promise."

"No one's going to try," Steve assured him hastily. "She's not going back to her mother. And we're not letting SHIELD have her."

They all looked at Clint and Natasha. Natasha shook her head. "Fury would turn her into an agent or an asset. That's no life for a child."

"What about the school?" Bruce asked.

"The Professor's already over-run with the number of mutants popping out of the woodworks," Tony said, shaking his head. "She's been neglected, starved, and she's only four years old. They wouldn't have the time or resources to devote to a baby."

"What she needs is love," Steve said quietly, remembering his own childhood, where the only thing that made it good was his mother's fierce love. "Lots and lots of love and attention and food."

Tony saw something in his eyes and shook his head emphatically. "No way, Cap."

"We were prepared to give her that as a puppy," Steve reminded them. "Are we saying that we care more for our animals than our own children? What kind of people does that make us?"

There was a silent moment of shame, and then Clint nodded. "I saved her from that alley, I'm not giving up on her now. I'm in."

"As am I," Thor said.

"Me too," Bruce added.

Natasha nodded.

They all looked at Tony. "You said yourself there's nowhere else for her to go," Steve reminded him.

Tony sighed. "I know, I know. I'm just trying to figure out what we're going to tell Pepper. She's going to have a fit."

JARVIS spoke up. "I am also 'in'," he said.

"Good," Steve said. "Now who's going to tell her?"

Thor half-raised his hand. "Allow me." He crossed to the living room, the others at his heels, and gently reached out to jostle the sleeping child's shoulder. "Allie?" he said coaxingly. "Allie, it's time to wake up."

She blinked up at him and sat up, rubbing tiny fists over her eyes. She saw the others all standing behind him, and shrank back into the couch, going from adorably sleepy to abjectly terrified.

That expression on such a tiny thing's face made all of them soften instantly. "Hey, it's okay," Clint said, kneeling down next to Thor to reach a hand out to her.

She shrank away from him.

"It's okay," Clint said gently, "Thor told us the truth and no one's angry. No one's going to hurt you."

She glanced at Thor uncertainly, and he gave her an encouraging smile. She relaxed slightly.

"And we talked about it," Clint said, "and guess what? You're going to stay here with us, just like if you were a real puppy."

Her eyes widened, shining with hope. "Weally?" she gasped quietly.

"Really really," Clint confirmed. "Is that okay with you, kiddo?"

She nodded enthusiastically, and threw her skinny arms around his neck in a hug.

He returned the hug and lifted her clean off the couch, settling her on his hip with a frown. "You're way too skinny," he said.

Her face scrunched up.

"But that's okay," Steve added, giving her a kind smile. "Because we have plenty of food and you can eat whenever you're hungry."

"Better start with soft foods, like we were doing before," Bruce advised. "If she hasn't eaten in a long time, any solid food will come right back up."

"How about some noodle soup?" Clint asked, carrying her into the kitchen.

She nodded.

He moved to set her down at the table, but her grip around his neck tightened instinctively.

Steve reached out for her. "C'mere, sweetheart," he coaxed. "Come sit with me and we can talk while Clint makes us some lunch, okay?"

Clint passed the child to Steve, who sat down with her in his lap. The others scattered around the kitchen, pretending not to listen as they eavesdropped. "How old are you?" he asked gently, smoothing her hair.

She leaned against his chest. "Four," she said, holding up four fingers.

"When's your birthday?" he continued. "Mine's July 4."

She shrugged.

"How did you get from New Haven to New York?" Steve asked next, keeping his tone light and conversational.

She curled up against him tightly. "I ran," she said in a quiet voice, "I ran and then I turned into a bird and I flew over the big roads for a long, long time till I fell asleep. And then I was a cat, and I got into a car on one of the roads, and I stayed there till the tall buildings, and then I got lost, and I turned into a puppy, and I found the big 'A', but I couldn't get inside. And then it was cold, and wainy, and-" She was starting to tremble again.

"And Clint found you and brought you here to be safe," Steve finished quickly, heading off the trauma of a terrifyingly long journey. "You're very brave, Allie."

"Tank you," she murmured, her cheeks turning pink.

"I wish I could turn into a cat," Steve said, smiling at her. "What kinds of animals can you turn in to?"

"A puppy, and a bird, and a kitty, and another puppy dat's big, and," she counted off on her fingers, "and a snake, and I don't know any other animals. That's five. And me."

"And you," Steve agreed. "That's how many?"

"Six."

He tickled her gently and she giggled. "You're so smart," he praised.

Clint brought over a bowl of chicken noodle soup and a glass of milk. "Here we go," he said, ruffling her hair. "Noodle soup for the smartest little girl in the tower."

She blinked up at him. "Thank you," she said softly.

"My pleasure," he replied, kissing her forehead.

She worked on her soup until she felt full, and someone warmed up the milk for her. She sipped at it, blinking, each blink heavier than the last, until she fell asleep with the mug in her hands. Only Steve's reflexes caught the mug as it tilted, and he put it on the table. And before their eyes, Allie turned from a little girl into a tiny, tiny kitten with white and grey stripes, curled up on his lap.

"Whoa," Clint said, after a shocked silence.

Steve reached out to pet the kitten lightly, and he grinned when she started to purr. It was very, very faint, but it was there. His grin widened.

Tony huffed. "She's even cuter as a kitten than a puppy. That cannot be possible."

"When she wakes up, we'll bring her down to the med floor and get a full physical examination," Bruce said. "I'll go set it up."

"I'll get the dog things out of your room," Natasha said, disappearing.

"I guess I'll go buy some four-year-old things," Clint said, after a minute. "Tasha, wait up! What do girls wear?" He hurried after her.

Tony drained the rest of his coffee. "I'm going to go hunt down her past and have that evil mother of hers charged for child neglect."

"Who's going to tell Pepper?" Steve asked.

"You are," Tony said, giving him pleading eyes. "Please? She loves you, and you don't annoy her as much as I do."

Steve sighed. "All right. Thor, if you could go with Clint and help him pick out child-sized furniture, that'd be great."

Thor nodded regally and went to find the archer.

Tony had vanished to his lab, so Steve was left with a lapful of sleeping kitten.

He stayed there, reading the news on his tablet, and halfway through the New York Times, Allie shifted into her original human form. He adjusted quickly, and let her curl into his side, her hair tickling his face. "This is going to take some getting used to," he whispered.

"Indeed, sir," JARVIS replied. "She reads as a different signature each time. It's quite incredible."

"I bet." He smoothed her fly away hair down, and said, "Well, I guess it's now or never. Is Ms. Potts in the building?"

"Yes sir, she's in her office."

"Thanks, J." Steve stood up, Allie securely resting in his arms, and went down to Pepper's office. Thankfully, no one encountered them on the way there. He suspected JARVIS had something to do with it.

Pepper was on the phone with someone when Steve was ushered in. She waved at him to wait for a second, did a double-take at the child in his arms, and quickly finished up her phone call. She came around the desk. "Who's this?"

"This is Allie," Steve said bluntly, all of his speech-making capabilities somehow vanished.

She raised an eyebrow. "Did Tony put you up to this?"

"No ma'am." He shifted his burden. "She's a shapeshifter. JARVIS found out last night and Thor discovered it this morning. She ran away from her mother and came to find the Avengers because she believed we would keep her safe. She's four years old, Pepper, and she didn't even have a name."

Pepper's eyes filled with tears as she looked at the little girl and realized why she was so small and thin. "Poor baby," she said, reaching out to touch the little girl's hair gently.

Allie sighed in her sleep and her fingers twined into Steve's hoodie.

Pepper looked at Steve. "Are we keeping her?"

"Yes."

Pepper nodded. "I'll get the paperwork started. She'll have to be legally adopted by one of you after we declare the mother unfit, but we can put her as a ward of the Maria Stark Foundation till then."

"Tony's already started looking for the mother," Steve said.

"Good. And somebody's gone out to get clothes and toys and things?"

Steve nodded.

Pepper smiled. "Yay teamwork." She patted Steve on the shoulder. "Go babysit."

He left Pepper to her work, and returned to the common floor upstairs. He watched a movie on TV for a while, and Allie woke up thirty minutes later. "Hey, sleepyhead," he said, giving her a gentle smile.

She smiled back at him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Whatsat?" she asked, pointing to the TV.

"It's called Roman Holiday," Steve said. "You want to watch it with me?"

She nodded, and they watched it in content silence. She reached out ten minutes later for Clint's sweater on the corner of the couch, and wrapped it around herself like a blankie. "Where's everyone?" she asked during a commercial break.

"Well, Clint and Thor are getting you some clothes and things, and Tony and Bruce are working, and Natasha's doing, something probably."

She giggled at the face he made.

"You turned into a kitten for a while," Steve mentioned, watching her reaction. She froze, but she seemed more curious than scared. "You were cute, too," he continued, hugging her close. "You were this big, and you were purring."

"I was happy," she said, tilting her head up to look at him backwards.

He smiled. "I'm glad." He watched her zip the sweater up and down, and asked, "Is your dress, is that part of you, too?"

She shook her head. "It changes with me. Like, puppies gots collars. And kittens too."

"And do all clothes work like that?"

She stared at him, wide-eyed. "I don't know."

"Well, we can experiment," he reassured her.

The commercial ended and she went quiet again.

A~A~A~A

When the movie ended, Steve took Allie down to the med ward, and she let Bruce examine her. "Well, you're very strong," he said, giving her a peppermint candy he'd conjured from a desk drawer. "Do you want to try and find your heart beat while I talk to Steve over here?"

Allie nodded and took the stethoscope, carefully putting the ends in her ears.

Steve raised an eyebrow at Bruce.

Bruce shook his head. "Chronic malnutrition, dehydration, anemia, and a slight case of bronchitis from exposure."

"For cryin' out loud," Steve said, shocked. "No wonder she's been sleeping all day yesterday and today. What do we do?"

"Make sure she gets foods rich in iron, food all day anyway, lots of liquids, not any heavy food until next week at least, and we'll get her some antibiotics." Bruce gave Steve an encouraging smile. "She'll be okay. I took some blood samples to analyze her mutant abilities, but that's it."

Steve nodded, reassured. He went over to where Allie was listening to the wall through the stethoscope. "What're you listening to?" he asked gently, crouching beside her.

She smiled at him. "Mr. Jarvis's heart. It sounds nice."

Steve couldn't help glancing up at the ceiling. "JARVIS?"

"One of the computer cores," JARVIS supplied.

"Oh." Steve hid a grin. "Listen sweetheart, we're done down here."

"Agent Barton and Mr. Odinson have returned," JARVIS announced.

"Let's go," Steve said, and his heart melted a little when Allie held her arms up to be carried. He scooped her up and settled her on his hip.

They went back up to the living room and found a small explosion of children's items. Steve put Allie down and picked up a tiny blue elephant thoughtfully.

"Honeeyyy, we're hoooooome," Clint said, giving Allie a wink and making her giggle. "And we've got milkshakes!" he added, handing her a strawberry milkshake that was half whipped cream.

She took the milkshake in a daze and stared at the piles of stuff: leggings, dresses, shirts, jeans, jammies, sweaters, toys, and books. And then she hid behind Steve, clutching at his leg. "Is too much," she whispered, sounding distressed.

Steve, Clint, and Thor shared an uncertain glance. Then Thor knelt down in front of Allie and gently pulled her away from Steve's leg, wrapping her in a hug. "It is not too much," he corrected gently. "This is what we _wanted_ to get you, because you are worth it and deserve to be happy and have fun. Okay?"

A tiny nod into his shoulder.

"Good girl." He pressed a kiss to her hair and picked up a pair of soft leggings and a flowery shirt. "Do you want to change into these? They're quite soft."

"Okay." She changed in the bathroom and came out, twisting her little hands uncertainly. "What do you think?" she asked.

Clint gasped dramatically and scooped her up in a hug. "Did you just shapeshift into a princess?" he gasped, kissing her hair and tickling her sides.

She giggled and turned bright red. "No it's just me," she replied, wriggling around and shrieking with laughter.

He stopped tickling her and grinned. "You look very nice," he said.

"Thank you Mr. Clint," she said, hugging him. She pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Thank you thank you."

"You're very welcome, munchkin," he said, smiling at her softly. He patted her thin little arm gently. "Would you like to wear a sweater, Allie? I don't want you to be cold."

She wriggled out of his arms and went to drag on his old sweater. "There."

"You don't want one that's your size?" Steve asked, holding up a small green hoodie.

"Nope," Allie said, snuggling into the giant sweater. "I like dis one. Smells good."

Clint smirked. "I'm totally the favorite."

Steve and Thor rolled their eyes. "Where are we going to put the furniture?" Thor asked, gesturing to the pile of boxes off to the side. "In whose apartment is she going to sleep?"

"The question really is, who has the least problems sleeping?" Steve asked quietly, as Allie wandered off to play with her new set of dolls. "I don't trust myself not to scare her in the middle of a dream or a flashback."

Clint shook his head. "Not me or Tasha then. Or Tony. Or Bruce."

Thor nodded. "I will take responsibility for the child's safety at night," he said. "I have very few nightmares, and can sense the difference between friend and foe even in sleep."

"So if she crawls in bed with you as a kitten you're not going to smush her," Steve said.

"No."

"Cool." Clint picked up an armful of clothes. "You guys get the heavy stuff."

They carried the child-sized bed, dresser and desk and play table and mini-kitchen set and painting easel into Thor's spare bedroom and set it up. Natasha came in while they were unpacking everything and took over decorating and placement of objects.

"Not bad," she said, eyeing the now cheerful, child-friendly looking room. "Who's watching Allie?"

The men all shared a guilty glance.

"I am, Agent Romanoff," JARVIS said calmly. "She is currently entertaining herself with the Legos."

They went downstairs and Clint choked on a laugh. "We maybe shouldn't have gotten the four hundred piece set," he said, shrinking under Steve's glare. "That was a tactical mistake."

"No kidding," Natasha said dryly.

There were Legos _everywhere_ , mostly sorted by color and size, and in the very center of the living room, Allie was building a tower. It was already almost as tall as her. "Is okay," she assured them, reading their expressions. "I clean up."

"Well at least she's responsible about it," Natasha muttered, gracefully edging her way through the Legos and sitting on the floor next to Allie. "Can I help you build your tower, _malyshka_?"

"Yeah. The green pieces, pwease."

"Sure."

They played on the floor while the guys put together some dinner. As soon as Allie ate her fill, she climbed off her chair and started to pile the Legos back into the bin.

Tony and Pepper came into the living room while Allie was cleaning up her toys. "She's so cute," Pepper said, smiling at the child as they joined the other Avengers in the kitchen.

"What did you find?" Steve asked.

Tony's grin fell. "Everything." He threw up a holo screen and blocked it from Allie with his body. "All right. Her former address, 3254 S Mitchell St, New Haven." It was a rundown old duplex that should have been condemned a decade ago, and the only sign that it was lived in, was the light on inside. "Renter is Michelle McCallen, 28 years old, single, and there's no sign of a child anywhere. She didn't even put her as a dependent on her taxes. Which led me to birth certificates and hospital stays by the mother." He pulled up another screen. "I found her birthday, mid-October, but it's otherwise blank. Apparently the mother never gave her a name. She's just Baby McCallen, female, 7 lbs 2 oz. That was the last record of her till now."

"Poor baby," Clint said sorrowfully. He looked over to check on Allie. She was almost done putting everything away.

"We've reported her condition to the state, and they've allowed us to keep her as a temporary foster child while they look into the case," Pepper continued. "We can't start anything more permanent, though, until one of you signs the adoption papers."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Steve decided after everyone shared a glance. The whole situation was too new to be making any final decisions that would change lives.

"But in the meantime," Clint said, reading Allie's sluggish posture, "somebody needs to go beddy-bye." He stood up and went to pick up the four-year-old. "Tired, baby girl?" he asked.

She shook her head.

"Well, we can fix that. How about a nice bath?"

She brightened up. "A bath?"

"Yeah. We got toys and everything."

She nodded.

"All right, let's go." He carried her up a level to Thor's room and filled up a warm bath, human sized instead of puppy sized this time. He put in a bit of bubble bath, a handful of toy ducks and assorted floaty things, and left the door open while she undressed and jumped in the tub. "You okay in there by yourself?" he asked.

"Yeah."

He kept an eye on her for the next twenty minutes as she played, and then went in. "All right, munchkin, time to wash up."

She pouted at him.

He ignored the pout and handed her a washcloth full of soap. "Here you go. Don't forget your belly button and your toes and behind your ears."

She scrubbed at her ears diligently.

"I sound like a mom," he groaned. "What is this world coming to?"

"I like you," Allie offered.

He smiled and splashed a little water at her. "I like you too, kiddo."

She giggled and handed him the washcloth.

"All right, now your hair," he said, holding up the kids' shampoo.

"You has to do it," she said. "I get soap in my eyes."

Clint sighed. "All right, scoot over here then."

She leaned against the edge of the tub and tilted her head back.

He poured some shampoo in her hair and scrubbed, and carefully rinsed it with a cup of water. rinse and repeat with conditioner, and he pulled the plug on the water. "All righty, you're clean. Stand up."

She stood up, he wrapped her in a purple towel, and carried her into her room. "All right, pajama time. Which ones do you want?" He'd picked out six Avengers pajama sets and a flowery set, and a purple bathrobe.

She picked a red Avengers pajama set with Black Widow on them, and pulled them on.

He ushered her into the bathroom to brush her teeth, and while she brushed her teeth, he brushed her hair and braided it so the ends wouldn't get tangled.

She spit and rinsed and stared at him. "How you do that?" she asked, staring at the end of her braid.

Clint didn't feel like explaining how he'd been a makeup and hair stylist for six months on a SHIELD op when he was younger, so he just said, "I help Natasha with her hair."

"Oh." She wiped the corner of her mouth with a sleeve absently. "Done?"

He frowned. "Bath time, brush teeth, yeah I think that's it."

She went into her room and bounced on the bed. "I'm not sleepy," she announced.

He sighed. "Do you want to come watch TV with us in the living room?"

"Yeah." She lay on her back and turned into a puppy wearing a cute little Black Widow pajama set.

He smiled and picked her up. "Come on, then."

As soon as they got into the living room, she wriggled out of his hands and raced across the living room to leap into Tony's lap. She yipped at him and wagged her tail.

"All clean?" Tony asked, petting her head.

She licked his hand.

"That's so gross," Tony sighed.

She pouted at him and went to cuddle up to Bruce's ribs. Bruce smiled. "Hi Allie."

They watched the rest of the movie and Allie went to sleep on the cushion between Thor and Bruce. As the end credits rolled, Thor carefully lifted the puppy from the sofa, said his goodnights, and left.

He tucked her into her small bed and left the night light on. "JARVIS, you will monitor her?" he asked.

"Of course sir," JARVIS said.

Thor went to bed.

A~A~A~A

Two hours later he woke up to find Allie standing by the side of his bed. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm scawed," she whispered.

"Why are you scared, little one?" he asked.

"I don't know." She gave him a pitiful look. "Can I sleep in here with you?"

He sighed. "You have your own room, Allie, it's very safe, I promise."

She pouted at him.

He sighed. "Very well."

She curled up next to him and in two seconds, was asleep.

Thor put a pillow on the other side of her to prevent her from falling off the bed, and went to sleep.

He woke up the next morning to find a kitten standing on his chest, staring at him nose-to-nose. "Mrow," she said.

"Good morning," he said. "Are you hungry, little one?"

"Mreow." She leaped off his chest and padded into the other room. A second later, she called back, "Can we has waffles, Thor?"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: More mentions of child neglect. But again, twice as much fluff. I'm not good at angst, so it's all resolved quite quickly :) Also, our favorite agent!**

That day, Tony gave Allie an IQ test. "You just have to answer the questions and follow the instructions, okay kiddo?"

"Okay." She looked at the colored blocks and the kiddie-colored tablet. "Is it a game?"

"Yep, it's a game," he said. "You just play it and I'll watch you, okay?"

She sat in the middle of the living room and JARVIS began to coach her through the test.

"What are you doing to my child?" Clint asked, making Tony flinch.

"Dude, what did we say about sneaking up on people?" Tony demanded, putting his coffee cup down.

"What are you doing?" Clint repeated.

"Giving her an IQ test."

"She's _FOUR_ , Stark."

"So? At four I was building computers. She's a little baby shapeshifter, we have to see if she's got any other special talents. Plus, we're homeschooling her, so we have to know what kind of curriculum to build."

"We're not homeschooling her," Clint said, outraged. "She needs to go to a normal public school!"

"She's the baby Avenger, she's not going to exist for six hours every day in public with no protection! Of _course_ we're homeschooling her!"

Allie stopped playing and looked over at the two adults, eyes wide.

Natasha appeared from the other side of the living room and knelt beside Allie. "Hey, Allie, how's your game going?"

Allie, distracted, turned to look at Natasha and showed her the tower she was building with the colored blocks.

Natasha gave the two men a deadly glare and mouthed, "STOP. FIGHTING."

Clint and Tony shared an ashamed glance. "How about homeschool with occasional playdates?" Tony asked.

"Sounds good." Clint sat next to him on the couch with a beer. "How long is it going to take her?"

"Well once Natasha gets out of the _way_ ," Tony glared at her meaningfully, "Allie should be done in half an hour."

It turned out Allie was a very intelligent four-year-old. Tony gave her a brand new toy as a prize for finishing the "game", and she went off to play with the plush Captain America figure with Natasha.

"If we nurture this beautiful baby brain, she could be a genius," Tony said happily, looking at the scans. "JARVIS, let's get started on some educational games."

"Not too many," Steve cautioned. "We're limiting her exposure to tech to two hours a day."

"But-" Tony started.

"No," Steve said. "She's just a child, and long exposure to screens and technology is bad for any developing brain."

"Since when do you know anything about kids?" Tony asked.

Steve held up his own tablet. "I _do_ know how to use the internet, Tony. I've read a lot of articles about child development since yesterday."

"Send me some of those?" Clint asked.

"Yeah, sure."

The elevator doors slid open, and a familiar black suited figure appeared. Thing was, he was supposed to be dead.

Clint turned white as a sheet. "Coulson?" he whispered.

"Hi." He gave them all a sheepish grin and a wave.

Natasha stared at him in shock, and carefully moved to swing Allie onto her hip. "C'mon baby," she murmured, "let's go upstairs to your room okay?"

"Please stay," Coulson said, making the redhead freeze in her tracks. He walked over to her and smiled at Allie. "Hi, little one."

She stared at him, wide-eyed, and curled into Natasha's side. "Who are you?" she asked quietly, wrapping an arm around the red-head's neck.

"My name is Phil," Coulson said. "I used to work with Natasha and Clint."

"You a superhero?" she asked quietly.

Coulson shook his head. "Just an agent."

"Actually," Steve said, coming forward, "Phil here _is_ a superhero. He helped save the world from the bad guys."

Her eyes went wide. "Weally?"

"Really really," Steve confirmed.

Clint spoke up, his tone masking the hurt in his voice. "Last time we saw him though; he was really sick. Really, really sick. How did you get better, Phil?"

"Yeah, Agent?" Tony added.

Coulson looked guilty. "I really did die for a few minutes. I didn't know I'd survived till I woke up two months later."

"Why weren't we told?"

Coulson shook his head. "Fury didn't want to mess up what you had." He gestured around the tower. "Just look at you all. Living in the same tower, haven't killed each other yet, working together to save the world, and you're even thinking of adopting a child."

"How did you even-"

"I talked to Pepper," Coulson said, giving them a sheepish grin. "I couldn't have gotten in the tower otherwise."

Tony's eyes narrowed. "If you left her in tears, Coulson, I swear-"

"No, no, I promise. There was a little bit of tears but I apologized so..." He took a deep breath. "Anyways. The reason I'm here is, to apologize to all of you, and-"

"No," Clint said, standing up.

Coulson's impassive face crumpled and he almost looked like he was going to cry.

Clint suddenly grabbed him in a hug. "You have _nothing_ to apologize for," he said fiercely, his words muffled in the older man's shoulder. "Nothing, you hear me?"

Coulson nodded silently, eyes closed in relief.

Natasha pressed her lips together tightly and looked away, trying to keep it together.

Allie suddenly showed her genius and wriggled. "Down," she requested.

Natasha put her down.

Allie gave her an insistent look. "Hugs make everytin' better," she whispered.

"Yeah, baby girl," Natasha said, giving her a soft smile, before grabbing Coulson in her own fierce hug. "Don't _ever_ do that again," she ordered.

"Never," Coulson promised.

Tony cleared his throat as Allie climbed into his lap. "Ahem. Not to break up the moment-" that was exactly what he was doing and he knew it; he was allergic to sentiment "-but this little girl is hungry and I'm pretty sure she wants pizza."

"Pizza!" Allie cheered.

The three spies cleared their throats and stepped away from each other.

Steve came over and clapped him gently on the shoulder. "I have those cards, if you want to stop by my room and get them. I signed them."

Coulson's face lit up with fanboyish glee.

"Where are you staying?" Tony asked, picking up Allie. "Don't say SHIELD, because their dormitories are-" He stopped abruptly and glanced at the child in his arms. "Really bad," he said lamely. "There's a guest suite on the spies' floor, we can fix it up in five minutes flat if you want to stay. JARVIS, get the guest suite ready." He gave them a slightly manic grin. "Cool." He ruffled Allie's hair. "C'mon Allie, you can pick your pizza." He left the living room.

Steve grinned. "That means you're staying for dinner, by the way."

Coulson nodded. "I guessed that."

Clint slung an arm around his former handler's shoulders, and then froze. "Are you fully healed?" he asked, inspecting his chest. "Should you even be up? Do you need to sit down?"

Coulson gave him a tired grin. "I'm okay for another couple of hours. Fury has me on light duty for another two months."

"That just means you're going to be our handler for the foreseeable future," Natasha surmised. Now that the emotions had cleared, she realized why Coulson was actually here.

"Awesome," Clint said.

Thor and Bruce came in from the elevator, talking about Star Wars. Bruce saw him first, and stopped in mid-phrase. "Uh..."

"The Son of Coul!" Thor said joyfully. "You are not dead!" He grabbed him by the shoulders and hugged him.

"Careful," Clint and Natasha scolded.

Thor gave them a wounded look. "I am careful," he protested. "I have kept my full strength at bay since Allie entered the tower."

"Yep, you're fine," Coulson assured him.

Bruce offered him a smile. "Nice to see you again."

"Glad to be here," Coulson replied.

"PIZZA'S READY!" Steve hollered from the kitchen.

They all went into the kitchen, and Steve distributed the ten pizzas. Allie got her own child-sized pizza with pepperoni and pineapples, and she ate exactly half of it before she declared, "Done."

"Are you sure, baby girl?" Clint asked. "You're not hungry at all?"

She shook her head and yawned. "No."

Clint smirked. "All right, I think it's naptime for all little shapeshifters."

"No," Allie said stubbornly.

Clint picked her up and handed her the Captain America plushie. "Just rest your head, sweetheart."

She rested her head on his shoulder and fell asleep two seconds later.

Coulson looked impressed. "I thought four-year-olds were more work than that," he said.

Bruce shook his head. "Once her energy levels go up and she's over the bronchitis, she'll be way more energetic. I have a feeling naptime is going to be difficult later."

"That also begs the question, where did you get the child in the first place?" Coulson asked.

Clint coughed awkwardly. "I found her, on the streets."

"And why did you bring her home instead of taking her to the proper authorities?"

At that moment, Allie's unconscious brain shifted her from a girl to a puppy, and she pawed sleepily at the Cap plushie before settling again on Clint's chest.

Coulson raised an eyebrow. "Ah. Never mind." He smiled. "She's cute."

"You should see her as a kitten," Thor said. "She is adorable."

Coulson nodded. "And how is this going to work with your superhero agenda?"

"Not everyone needs to go all the time," Steve said. "And now that you're back you can take care of her if we're all out."

"Oh no. I'm not a babysitter."

"You took care of Clint all these years," Natasha reminded him.

"And Tasha," Clint added gleefully.

Coulson heaved a sigh, but he didn't look very put out. "Fine."

"And puppy therapy is very helpful," Bruce added. "Calms the Hulk right down."

Coulson shot the puppy a contemplative look.

"NO," all six Avengers chorused. "You are not turning her into an asset," Steve added in his 'Captain' voice.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Coulson said dryly.

A~A~A~A

Allie slept for another forty minutes before finally waking up. She yawned and stretched, her little pink puppy tongue sticking out as she yawned, her paws reaching out to the ceiling. She blinked up at Clint and he stroked her ears.

"You awake, sweetie?" he asked gently.

She wagged her tail and yapped happily.

"Hungry?"

She jumped off his lap and went for the toys in the living room. She grabbed the stuffed duck in her mouth and trotted back over to the superheroes, wagging her tail eagerly.

"Oh I see. You wanna play, huh," Steve said, taking the toy gently from her mouth. He tossed it to the other side of the living room and she raced after it.

"So cute," Clint said.

Allie wrestled the duck for a moment and then trotted over to Coulson, placing the stuffed duck on his shoes and looking up at him expectantly.

"I don't play fetch," he informed her.

She gave him the saddest pair of puppy eyes and her little tail drooped sadly.

"Agent, just toss the duck," Tony said firmly.

Coulson sighed, picked up the slightly slobbery duck, and threw it.

Allie chased after it, brought it back, and pawed at Coulson's pant leg. After a moment's hesitation, he picked her up.

She stared at him and leaned forward to gently bop him in the nose with her own cold wet nose.

He cracked a smile. "Hi."

She wagged her tail and curled up in his lap, gnawing on the stuffed duck contently.

"All right," Coulson said, "I can see the appeal."

The Avengers shared a grin.

A~A~A~A

That night Allie was tucked into bed by Clint and Natasha. She stared up at them and asked, "Can I has story?"

"Story?" Natasha asked nervously.

"Story," Allie confirmed, wriggling out of her tucked-in blankets and sitting up. "Like on TV."

The last cartoon she'd watched, the mom had tucked in the child, read them a story and kissed them on the forehead.

Clint sat on the edge of the bed. "All right. What story do you want, kiddo?" He glared at Natasha out of the corner of his eye until the red-head very gingerly sat down as well.

Allie gave them a blank look. "I no know. You know."

"Your mom never-" Clint cut himself off. "Of course not. I'm sorry baby." He leaned forward to give her a quick kiss on the forehead. "Natasha, you know any bedtime stories?"

Natasha's eyes widened. "I'm a spy not a nursemaid," she said lowly, in Russian.

"No fairy tales or anything?" Clint asked.

"You ought to know more than I do," she replied.

Allie wriggled around impatiently. "Princess," she requested.

They shared a glance. "All right," Clint said, hoping nobody was recording this, "once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess."

"Wif red hair," Allie added, giggling.

"With red hair," Clint obliged, sneaking a glance at Natasha. "Her whole life, she lived in a castle far, far away, in a mountain. And the princess was very lonely, because there was no one to play with at the top of the mountain."

"And then one day, a dashing prince came along," Natasha continued.

"Wif purple bow and arrow," Allie supplied, falling onto her pillow in a fit of giggles.

Both spies avoided looking at each other. "With a purple bow and arrows," Natasha allowed, "to rescue her."

Clint picked up the story. "He climbed to the top of the mountain, and tried to get inside the castle. But the princess was scared, because no one had ever tried to help her before, so she tried to make the prince go away."

"Is not nice," Allie murmured.

"No it wasn't," Clint said, grinning slyly at Natasha. She punched him lightly in the arm and his grin widened.

"But the princess saw something nice in the prince's eyes," Natasha murmured, reaching over to smooth a hand over Allie's hair. "So she let him in the castle. And he showed her there were other people that could help her not be alone, and the prince and the princess went down the mountain."

"And Co-son," Allie added sleepily, nestling under the blankets. There were no flies on _this_ little girl, thank you very much.

"And there was a very wise king named Coulson," Clint continued, slightly chagrined that a four-year-old had seen through their 'fairy tale', "who adopted them both, and sent the prince and the princess to save people all over the world. It was very dangerous, but they had a very good time. And eventually, the prince and the princess found a family who helped them save the whole world." He smiled down at the drowsy girl.

"And dey live happy ever'n'ever," Allie slurred, closing her eyes.

Clint met Natasha's eyes and smiled slightly. "Yeah. And they lived happily ever after."

"The end," Natasha finished quietly.

A quiet sigh from Allie broke through their bubble, and they both turned to look at the snoozing girl. Clint kissed her on the forehead and drew the covers up to her chin. "Good night, sleep tight," he said quietly, remembering the few times Barney had tucked him in like that. He stood up carefully.

Natasha edged over and kissed Allie's forehead. "Sleep well, _malyshka_ ," she whispered.

They left the room, and found Coulson leaning on the wall next to the door. He gave them a small smile. "So I'm a king, huh?"

"Definitely," Clint said, grinning. "King of spies."

"Well then what's Fury?"

Natasha scoffed. "He's the captain of the pirate spies, obviously."

A~A~A~A

A few days passed. Allie's thin face rounded out, and when the Avengers cuddled her, they could no longer feel such a sharp outline to her ribs. She gained more energy but still took two naps a day, and halfway through the night she would climb into someone's bed and curl up on their chest as a kitten or a puppy.

"I think it's the sound of our heartbeats," Bruce theorized, watching Allie nap curled up next to Tony's robots in the lab.

Dummy, Butterfingers, and You were in awe over the small shapeshifting child, and as she was currently in human form, her thin arms wound around Dummy's main body, the robot was standing stock still, his claw hesitantly resting on her back. Butterfingers and You stood guard over them, whirring and chirping quietly.

Tony nodded. "Yeah. You should've seen Pepper's face when we woke up yesterday morning and Allie was sleeping on my arc reactor. There's like, two hundred pictures now."

"Only 12, sir," JARVIS corrected.

Bruce eyed Tony cautiously. "It didn't bother you?"

"She was purring," Tony explained. "It was very soothing."

"I see." Bruce checked the clock. It was time for lunch. Now that there was a child on the premises that everyone took turns being responsible for, everyone was eating much more regularly. Bruce, needing routine and structure himself, couldn't argue with that. He crossed over to the puppy pile of robots and child, and carefully lifted Allie off the blanket on the floor. "Lunch time, sweetheart."

She buried her face in his lab coat and wrapped her arms around his neck with a sigh.

Bruce shifted her to his hip and let her sleep while he saved his work and set up the next run of experiments. "Tony, you coming?"

"In a bit," Tony said distractedly. "There's a fault in the power line somewhere... Dummy, find me the wrench kit."

Dummy looked plaintively at the sleeping child.

"She's with Bruce now, you can stand down," Tony told him. "Wrench kit."

Dummy whirred off and Bruce went upstairs.

He placed her on the couch to finish her nap and made some simple ham and cheese sandwiches.

Suddenly there was a loud THUMP from the living room, and two seconds later a startled wail.

Bruce dropped the mayo knife on the counter and rushed into the living room.

Allie was on the floor, having rolled off the couch in her sleep. She was holding her arm and crying, half in pain and half in fright. "Bwooose," she sobbed pitifully. "Ow."

"I'm so sorry baby, where does it hurt?" he asked, sitting on the ground and pulling her into his lap to examine her arm. She winced when he prodded gently at a spot near her shoulder. "Ouch, huh, I'm sorry Allie."

She sniffled. "I felled."

"I know, sweetheart, I know, I'm sorry." He kissed the bruise gently. "Is that better?"

She nodded. "I'm hungwy, Bwuce."

He picked her up, careful not to touch her arm. "All right, c'mon, let's go have lunch and you'll feel better, okay?"

She nodded. "And then we'll have ice cream?"

"After you eat your sandwich."

"Kay."

Clint came rushing into the living room. "I heard crying," he said, looking at them worriedly.

"She's okay," Bruce assured her. He hung his head guiltily. "It was my fault, though. I left her on the couch and she rolled over in her sleep and fell."

Clint patted him on the arm. "It was an accident Bruce, it's fine."

"But she was my responsibility-"

Clint stopped him. "Bruce. Don't beat yourself up about it. Kids fall off the bed. It's okay."

"It's okay," Allie assured the scientist, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Is all good."

Bruce smiled down at the girl and kissed her hair. "All right, Allie, it's all good. Who wants a sandwich?"

"Me!"

A~A~A~A

Allie was comfortable with the Avengers, Pepper, and Coulson. Anyone else, she regarded with deep suspicion. When Maria came by the tower to drop some papers off for Coulson and gave the little girl an odd look, Allie ran away, turned into a cat, and hid under the sofa until JARVIS assured her that the stranger was completely gone from the tower. She stayed in cat form, jumping at the slightest noise, until Clint distracted her with ice cream and a cookie.

A~A~A~A

It was a couple days afterwards that the police finally called the case of parental neglect, and requested that the Avengers bring the girl and the initial evidence to the station, after which the mother would be questioned.

At first all of them wanted to go, but Thor and Bruce decided to stay behind for obvious reason. Tony and Pepper had to go, since one was the registered homeowner and one was the fund manager. Steve agreed to go to keep an eye on Tony, and Natasha insisted on going to conduct the interro- ahem, questioning of the mother. That made Clint the designated babysitter.

Allie was still asleep, curled up in the very center of her flowery pillow, her little puppy chest moving up and down in peaceful sleep. Her paw twitched faintly.

Clint reached out to pet her head gently. "Allie, it's time to wake up."

She whined and buried her head in the pillow, still asleep.

He picked her up and cradled her like a baby. "Wakey wakey," he said teasingly, tickling her belly.

She squirmed and woke up, licking his fingers as he tickled her and batting her paws into his chest.

He kissed her head and placed her back on the bed. "C'mon baby girl, we gotta go places today. Can you get dressed?"

She shapeshifted back into a girl, and tugged at her Hulk pajamas. "Where we going?" she asked.

Clint handed her a pair of jeans and a purple blouse. "What shoes do you want?" he asked.

"Mm, boots."

He placed her little cowboy boots on the floor. "I'll be in the living room okay?"

"Okay."

She met him in the living room, dressed, with her shoes on the wrong feet. He sat her on the couch and fixed her shoes.

"Breakfast," Steve called.

They had pancakes, and then Allie asked again, "Where we goin'?"

Everyone shared a glance. "We're going down to the police station to talk to them about your mother," Steve said gently.

Her eyes went huge in her face and her chin wobbled. "You gonna take me back?" she asked, her eyes filling with tears.

"No, sweetheart, no," Steve said, reaching for her.

She shied away from him and pressed her back against the wall. "No," she said, "I be good. No mommy."

"Baby, no one's going to take you back," Clint said gently. "We're never, ever, going to take you back to that woman. I promise."

She looked at their faces, scrutinizing their expressions. She scrubbed at her eyes with her little fist. "Promise?"

"Promise," Clint said again. "The only reason we're going today is to tell them that she was a bad mommy, and that we love you and want to keep you where you'll be safe." He reached out and hugged her gently.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. "Good."

Steve reached out to smooth her hair. "Listen, sweetie, they're going to ask you some questions about your old life with your mommy. You just have to tell them the truth, okay? And one of us is going to be with you the whole time."

"And then we'll go to the park!" Clint added.

She nodded. "And then ice cream?"

"And then ice cream."

A~A~A~A

The social services worker was a nice lady who had three kids of her own and sat down with Allie on the floor. "That's a nice stuffed animal," Mrs. Riker said, pointing to the red and blue bear.

"This is Bucky Bear," Allie informed her. It was Coulson's contribution to her toy collection. "He's a collec-ibble edition."

"Bucky bear, huh," Mrs. Riker said, giving her a soft smile. "Did you have many toys at your old house?"

Allie shook her head and buried her nose in Bucky bear's fur. "No toys."

Mrs. Riker made a note. "Those are nice boots, too."

"Yeah. I like dese boots. They's got stars."

"What kind of shoes did you wear when you were with your mom?"

"No shoes."

"You didn't have any shoes."

"Nope."

"What did you wear?" Mrs. Riker asked, frowning sympathetically.

"Um, blue dress from my friend Sammy's mommy who gave it to me, and a jammy shirt that my mommy didn't use anymore so I took it. But shh, don't tell her." Allie adjusted the bear's jacket.

Mrs. Riker inspected the picture JARVIS took of her from the first day. Yep. Blue dress, very worn and dirty. "Why don't you want me to tell her?" she continued.

Allie frowned. "She get mad."

"What does she do when she's mad?"

Allie scowled. "She yells. And throws stuff."

"What do you do when she does that?"

"I run 'way and stay outside till she forgets she mad and den she ignores me 'gain," Allie replied.

"I see," Mrs. Riker said, trying to keep her expression neutral. "What did you have for breakfast this morning, Allie?"

"Pancakes and egg," Allie said. "I like Bwuce's pancakes. He makes 'em with bananers."

"Yeah?" Mrs. Riker encouraged, smiling. "And what did you have for dinner yesterday?"

"Soup and fishie crackers. And apple."

"Yum. What did you to eat when you were with your mom?"

Allie scowled again. "Cereal and milk."

"All the time? Nothing else?"

"Peanut butter. And, lef-overs."

"So she never made you meals?"

"No. Mommy didn't like me."

"Why not?"

Allie looked at the Avengers uncertainly.

"Mrs. Riker understands about special powers, baby, it's okay," Pepper assured her.

Allie hugged her Bucky bear. "Mommy didn't like me 'cuz I can change into different things."

"Can you show me, honey?"

Allie promptly turned into a kitten and raced over to bat at Tony's shoelaces. He picked her up and kissed her head. "A beautiful little mutant," Tony said, putting the kitten down. "You can change back now, doll."

Kitten turned into child, and Allie sat down in front of Mrs. Riker again. "See?" she asked.

"Yes I saw. That's amazing."

Allie blushed. "Tank you."

Mrs. Riker smiled at her for a moment before sobering. "Your mommy didn't like it when you did that?"

"No. She thinks I'm a, fweak."

"But you're not," Clint interjected, kneeling down to give her a hug. "You're very special and perfect just the way you are."

Mrs. Riker cleared her throat. "So, Allie, do you like living with the Avengers?"

"Yes," Allie said firmly, one arm around Clint's neck. "Dey play with me and make me breakfast and tucks me in at night, and tells me stories, and when I gets scared dey gives me hugs."

"That sounds very nice," Mrs. Riker said, smiling at her.

"Yeah." She turned to Clint and asked in a stage-whisper, "Are we done now? Can we go to the park and have ice cream?"

Clint raised an eyebrow at Mrs. Riker.

"I'm done talking to Allie," Mrs. Riker confirmed.

"Say thank you to Mrs. Riker, sweet pea," Clint prompted.

Allie smiled shyly at Mrs. Riker. "Tank you."

"Thank _you_ ," Mrs. Riker said. "I hope you have a good time at the park."

Allie nodded.

Clint lifted her up onto his hip. "Okay baby, let's go. See you guys at the tower."

Mrs. Riker turned to the other four Avengers. "So, what provisions have you made to care for a child?" she asked.

Pepper stepped forward with a tablet and a list.

A~A~A~A

Clint and Allie walked to the nearest park. Allie walked for a bit and then complained, "I'm tiiiiiiiiiiired..." and held up her arms to be carried.

He picked her up and hoisted her on his shoulders. "How do you like the view?" he asked, holding her ankles securely.

She giggled. "I'm tall now, like Thor."

"Just like Thor," Clint agreed.

She played with his hair as they walked, and spiked it up with her fingers. "You's a real hawk now," she declared, setting Bucky Bear on his head. "You're a nest."

"Bears don't have nests," Clint told her.

"This one does."

"Oh really?"

"Yep. he flies and everythin'."

"Awesome."

They got to the park and he placed her on the ground. "Okay, go play."

She looked at the different contraptions and looked back at him uncertainly. "How?"

He waved at the playground. "You know..." His heart broke a little bit. "You ain't ever been to a park, sweetheart?"

She shook her head. "We didn't have one near my old house."

"Oh." He picked her up and hugged her tightly. Even _he'd_ been able to play at the park with his older brother. "All right baby, let's go play," he said.

He taught her how to play on the see-saw, how to make herself go higher on the swings, and held her up while she practiced on the monkey bars. She really liked the swings, and they sat there for a while, just swinging back and forth and making the metal screech.

Then a group of kids came with their moms. Allie stopped swinging and Clint stopped as well. "Home?" she asked quietly, going over to hide behind him.

"You don't want to play with the other kids, Allie?" he asked.

She shook her head.

"Why not?"

She shook her head again.

He knelt down to her eye-level. "Are you shy, sweetheart?"

"What's shy?" she asked.

"You're scared to go over and talk to them?"

"Yeah."

"You didn't have any friends your age at your old house?"

She shook her head. "Just one girl. She was big and didn't play wif me but she gaves me stuff."

"Well these kids are just your age, I think," Clint said, watching the three girls and the two boys play. They looked nice, and the small herd of moms looked nice, too. "How about we try it? I'll go with you, and then maybe you can play with the girls, okay?"

"Okay," she said quietly.

He stood up and held her hand, gently guiding her over to the two girls, twins, who were letting their mom braid their hair so it wouldn't get messy.

"Stand still," the mom admonished. She smiled up at Clint as they approached. "Hello."

"Hi," Clint said, giving her his best 'Iowa country boy' smile. "My little girl wanted to play, but she's really shy."

"Aw, que bonita," the mom said, smiling at Allie. "These are my twins, Kimberley and Xitlaly, what's your name, m'ija?"

"Allie," she replied shyly, her gaze on the four-year-old twins. They gazed back at her.

"Hola," one of them said.

"Dat means hi," the other one said.

"Hi," Allie said.

"Wanna play?" The one with the finished braid grabbed Allie's hand gently. "We brought dolls."

The other twin danced impatiently while her mom finished braiding. "Maaaamiiii," she whined.

"There, go," the mom said, tying it off and sending her away. "Be nice!" she called.

"Si mami!" twin voices piped back.

Clint grinned and sat next to the mom. "I'm Clint," he said, proffering a hand.

"Ana," she replied. "How old is your girl?"

"Four."

"She's adorable."

"Thanks. So are yours."

Ana shook her head wryly. "They're adorable but they're pure energy."

Clint smiled. "Yeah, well, mine's a little bit calmer." He watched Allie introduce the twins to her Bucky bear, and by her gestures, he figured she was telling them who the real Bucky was.

"Are you married, Clint?" Ana asked, and added hastily, "It's not a pick-up line, I'm married myself. Just wondering."

Clint wondered if married to the job/married to his team was valid, and shook his head. "Nope. Single dad, that's me."

"And you've still got time to take her to the park," Ana said, smiling. "That's wonderful."

"Yeah." He grinned. "Yeah it is. And I've got a really good support system. It's good."

"Good." Ana was distracted by something. "Kimberley don't get muddy!" she hollered.

Clint and Allie stayed for a while, and then it started to look like rain, so he went and collected her. "Time to go, sweetheart," he said, holding out her jacket.

She pouted up at him. "But we're playing house," she said, pointing at the dolls and the bear sitting on the see-saw.

"You can play house at home," he said, picking up the Bucky bear. "Say bye to the twins, baby, we gotta get home before it rains."

The little kids said their goodbyes, and Clint and Allie headed for home. Allie walked a block before leaning against Clint's leg. "M' tired," she said.

He picked her up. "Just a little way to go," he promised. "You can sleep if you want, I've got you."

"But ice cream," she protested.

He rolled his eyes. "It's cold and you want ice cream?"

"Yes pwease."

He raised an eyebrow. "What if we tell the others to bring ice cream home with them?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." He shot off a text to Steve, who replied 'ok'. "His response times are getting faster," he mused.

Allie leaned her head on his shoulder, her arm around his neck. She was playing idly with the collar of his jacket. "Can we go to the park tomorrow?" she asked.

"Maybe," Clint said.

"Mmkay." She sighed, her fingers curling loosely against his neck. "I take nap," she decided, sighing again.

He kissed her forehead. "Okay. You take a nap."

She was asleep by the end of his sentence.

They got to the tower five minutes later, and he tucked her into bed sans cowboy boots. She didn't even stir for the next forty-five minutes, worn out from her adventures in the park.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Our favorite scientist and taser-wielding duo make an appearance...**

As soon as the other Avengers got home, Natasha ignored a curious Clint and made a beeline for Allie's room. He followed her, alarmed. "Tasha, what's wrong?"

She sat on the edge of the bed and scooped the sleeping child up, cradling her closely to her chest. She didn't speak for a long moment, just gently rocked Allie in her arms and studied the little girl's long, delicate lashes as they fluttered.

"Tasha?" Clint asked quietly.

She pressed a kiss to Allie's forehead and spoke. "The fact that that _woman_ had the _choice_ to have children, _chose_ to have this baby girl, and then just didn't _want_ her..." She broke off. "It makes me so..." she trailed off again and hugged Allie tighter.

Clint sat next to his best friend and partner and wrapped an arm around her. "You wouldn't have wasted your choice," he said softly.

"No."

He could see it in her eyes, the fierce ability to love that would make her a wonderful mother. "Tasha, why don't you adopt her?" he asked.

She froze, her shoulders tensing under his arm. "Me?"

"Yeah. You'd be a great mom. You understand how important it is, and how amazing it is, and I can tell you already love her."

"But I never had a mother. Clint, I was raised to be-" she couldn't even say it. She lowered her voice. "What if I turned her into me?"

Allie shifted and sighed, snuggling closer to Natasha.

They both looked down at the child and let her settle.

"Tasha, you are _not_ your past," Clint said softly, after a moment. He reached out to touch her chin, and lifted her head to meet his gaze. "Tasha, you are kind, and beautiful, and..." He got distracted by the closeness of her lips.

She leaned forward the last few centimeters and kissed him.

He cupped her cheek and returned the kiss, trying to show her what he was trying to say.

She pulled back after a few moments, and he let her. "Clint," she said softly, looking terribly unsure. "I don't know how to do this. Any of this." She glanced down at the sleeping Allie.

"You think I do?" Clint asked, huffing a laugh. "I wanna try though, with you. Can we try it, Tasha? Even Allie thinks we'd be good together."

Natasha's lips quirked up in a smile. Every night, Allie asked for a story about the prince and princess who saved the world together.

"Is that a yes, maybe?" Clint teased.

"Yes, maybe," she replied, smirking.

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "There's lunch, if you want."

Natasha hesitated. "I'll be down in a bit."

"Okay." He gave her a smile and left her to cuddle Allie.

When he got downstairs the sandwiches were gone. "Seriously, guys?" he asked.

"Sorry," Steve said sincerely. "We didn't know when you were coming back."

Clint made himself a sandwich. "So, what happened to make Natasha react that way?"

Steve scowled. "Ms. McCallen was completely unapologetic about neglecting her child and signed away her parental rights with a smile. A _smile_. She said good riddance."

"She's also going to jail," Tony added, pleased.

"Good." Clint stabbed the mayo vindictively. "Did Tasha break her arm?"

"I had to stop her," Steve replied.

Clint smirked at the mental image of the Cap holding back a spitting mad Black Widow. Then he sobered. "Did she say who the father was?"

"She didn't know."

"And the foster care stuff?"

"They're going to come inspect the living floors of the tower tomorrow, but we're pretty much approved anyways."

"Good." Clint told them all about Allie's first encounter with her age-mates in the park.

Natasha and Allie came in after that. Allie looked excited. "Ice cream?" she asked.

They smiled. "Yeah."

A~A~A~A

Mrs. Riker, the social services lady, was slightly awed to come up to the living floors of the Tower, but she took her job very seriously and inspected the security system, quizzed JARVIS on his babysitting capabilities, double-checked that all the restricted areas of the tower were actually blocked off from Allie's access, and looked at the little girl's room, and inspected both the common floor and everyone's living areas. They'd all cleaned their rooms, and the weapons were all carefully hidden away with safeties on.

"Well, everything looks good," Mrs. Riker said, smiling at Clint, who had Allie on his shoulders. Everyone else was scattered around the common floor, attempting to look casual and failing miserably. She turned to the rest of the group. "You are officially approved for long-term foster care, and I'll be back in six months to make sure your living area is still up to par."

"Thank you very much, Mrs. Riker," Pepper said, stepping forward to shake her hand.

"Not at all, Ms. Potts," Mrs. Riker said. She glanced over at Clint and Natasha. "Have you given any thoughts to adoption?" she asked.

Natasha pressed her lips together in a thin line, and turned away.

Clint swung Allie down from his shoulders and hugged her close. "We're still processing it," he said.

Mrs. Riker nodded and gave a knowing smile. "All right, take your time."

Pepper and Steve escorted her out, and Allie looked up at Bruce confidingly. "I get to stay, Bwuce?" she asked.

He knelt down and hugged her tightly. "Yeah, baby girl, you get to stay here."

She smiled and hugged him. "Good."

A~A~A~A

A week later Thor left for a few days to move his girlfriend and her intern to the Tower. When the three of them arrived at the tower, Allie was alone in the living room with her Legos. Steve had gone to answer a phone call when Jane and Darcy entered the common floor, sans Thor. "Are we on the right floor, Janey?"

"I don't know. Thor will be up in a second."

Allie had not been told that there were people coming over, and she didn't know when Steve was coming back. So she abandoned her Legos, turned into a corn snake, and slithered up to the top of the bookcase to hide.

Darcy and Jane saw the Legos and stuffed animals on the floor, and frowned. "That's weird," Darcy said. "I didn't think they had kids."

"They don't." Jane suddenly saw the snake, and let out a scream. "Snake! Snake! Darcy kill it, I hate snakes!"

"Aw, the snakey," Darcy cooed, going over to the bookcase. "It's not venomous, Jane, just a little scared. But it's so cute!"

Allie hissed at her warningly, terrified out of her wits. She saw the vent in the ceiling, and reached for it.

"Uh-oh, it's leaving," Darcy said, reaching for the snake.

JARVIS alerted Steve that Allie was fleeing into the vent, and said in the living room, "Ms. Foster, Ms. Lewis, please leave the snake alone."

"Fine with me," Jane said, from behind the sofa at the far wall.

Darcy went to stand by Jane. "Whose snake is it, JARVIS?"

"Mine," Steve replied, rushing in from the stairs. "Kind of all of ours." He climbed up on a chair to reach the vent. "Allie? Allie sweetheart, come on out." He pulled the vent cover off to stick his hand in. "Allie?"

She hissed at him.

"Allie, they're friends. They're nice, I promise. I'm sorry we didn't tell you they were coming, I forgot. Please come out?"

She twined around his fingers like a ribbon, seeking warmth.

He lifted her from the vent and kissed her head. "Hi, baby. You okay?"

"Is it a talking snake?" Darcy asked, wondering if the good Cap had lost his mind.

Steve grinned. "Not quite Ms. Lewis." He let Allie curl around his forearm. "We'll be back in a bit. Excuse us." He left the women in the common room and took Allie to her room. He sat on the floor and leaned back against the bed, lifting the snake to his gaze. A tiny delicate tongue flickered out. "Okay," he said, pulling her closer to his body, "we're going to sit here for a bit until you feel safe, okay? No pressure, sweetheart."

She twined up and down his arms for a bit, and then abruptly turned into a kitten. She meowed and kneaded her little paws into his chest.

"Hey, there's the pretty kitty," Steve cooed, lifting her up to kiss her head. He play-wrestled her for a little bit and let her bat at his shoelaces.

She bat at his shoelaces a final time, and turned into a puppy. She started to gnaw at his shoe.

"Hey," Steve said gently, pulling her away from his shoe. "Don't eat my shoe, I use that." He handed her the stuffed duck and let her chew on that.

She gnawed at it and nestled into his chest. He cradled her like a baby while she chewed on the bill of the stuffed duck, and in between one breath and another, she went from puppy to small girl.

He smiled down at her. "Hey, sweetheart. You feel better?"

"Yeah." She snuggled into his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Who was de ladies?"

"One of them is Thor's girlfriend. Her name is Jane. And the other one is her assistant and also Thor's friend, and her name is Darcy."

"Are dey nice?"

"Yeah, they're nice."

She pressed her face to his shoulder. "I'm sowwy I turned into snake and tried to run 'way."

"It's okay, sweetheart," he said. "You were scared, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah." He smoothed her hair. "When someone comes into the tower and JARVIS doesn't tell you it's safe, that's when you run away, okay? You turn into a snake, or a bird, or a kitty, and you run away and hide until we come get you. Okay, baby doll?"

"Okay Steeb." She stayed quiet for a while and then asked, "Do you think that Darcy and Jane would wanna play wif me?"

He smiled. "Yeah. I think that'd be a great idea."

A~A~A~A

So, Steve introduced the two women to the shapeshifting little girl. Jane showed interest in the little girl's gift, and Darcy offered to play stuffed animals with her. Allie also showed her the learning game on her tablet, and asked, "Do you know maths?"

Darcy smiled. "I know a little math. You want to do some?"

Allie pointed at the timer on top of the game. "I's gots to do twenty minutes learnin' evewy day. JARBIS is my teacher. It's math today."

"Oh I see." Darcy leaned over to look at Clint, who was grinning at them. "You're already homeschooling her?"

"No time like the present," Clint said.

"Tony says I'm a genus," Allie piped up.

Clint laughed and picked her up, settling her in his lap. "Genius, baby. Genus is like a family of species."

"What's a pecies?"

"Species. Like, a type of animal."

"Like a doggie?"

"Uh-huh. And there's different kind of doggies right? Fluffy ones and skinny ones and fat ones?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah, so each one of those is a species. And all together, they're a genus."

"Like a family?"

"Yep, you got it." Clint gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Smart girl."

"Das 5 minutes," she said, pointing at the timer. She looked up at the ceiling. "JARVIS, we do animals instead of maff?"

"Whatever interests you, young miss," JARVIS replied warmly.

"Good. Pictures please?" She climbed off Clint's lap and went to sit on the floor in her nest of pillows. A holographic image of a dog appeared in the air and she giggled. "Dat looks like me!"

Darcy grinned at Clint.

"What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"You're really good with her," Darcy observed.

Clint smiled at the little girl. "She makes it really easy," he said softly.

Darcy's smile widened. "You really love her, don't you?"

"Yeah," Clint said. "She makes that really easy, too."

A~A~A~A

A few days later, they took her to Coney Island. She'd never been on any ride, ever, and they were all jostling for chances to go with her on different rides. Clint won her a giant stuffed panda from one of the fair games, and Natasha won her a dollhouse complete with tiny wooden furniture. Steve bought her an ice cream, and Thor shared an elephant ear with her. Tony offered to buy the spinning teacup game entirely and install it in the Tower, but Allie didn't think that would be nice to the other little kids. For that, Pepper bought her a cotton candy.

A~A~A~A

Tony didn't like animals. Not really. He'd never had a pet, as a child, and when he was older he didn't want one. So it surprised him that he really loved the shapeshifting little girl who spent sixty percent of her life as a kitten or a puppy and left animal hairs on the furniture, and toys everywhere else.

It was 3:24 in the morning when he woke up from a bad nightmare, gasping for breath. He sat up and pressed a hand to his chest, feeling the reassuring hum of the arc reactor.

"Tony?" Pepper mumbled, squinting at him in the low light.

"Nightmare," he murmured, leaning over to press a kiss to her forehead. "Go back to sleep, Pep."

"You sure?" she asked.

"Yeah. I'll watch some TV and go back to sleep." He dragged on a robe over his tank top and pajama pants, and headed down to the common floor. Maybe one of the other PTSD-sufferers were awake and they could hang out.

He entered the common floor, and found a very familiar brown fluff ball on the beanbag in front of the TV. Some nighttime cartoons were on at a low volume. "JARVIS?" he asked quietly.

"The little miss could not sleep, so she decided to watch cartoons until she fell asleep. I was going to alert Agent Barton once she fell asleep."

"I'll take care of her, J." Tony got himself a cup of decaf coffee and sat down cross-legged next to the beanbag. "Hey, peanut."

Allie lifted her head and blinked at him sleepily, her tail wagging. She struggled to climb out of the beanbag, and Tony picked her up. She woofed happily.

"You couldn't sleep either, huh?" he asked her.

She shook her head and whined.

He sat in the beanbag and let her curl up on his chest, her head resting on the arc reactor. He lightly pet her back, sipped his coffee and let his mind wander as the children's show droned on about letters and numbers and friendship.

Allie fell asleep a few minutes later, her little puppy breaths slowing, and Tony soon followed, the bland TV show like a sedative to his overactive mind.

Steve found them at six o'clock when he came in for his pre-workout breakfast, and quietly asked JARVIS to take a picture.

Pepper came in an hour later for breakfast before going to work, and quietly asked JARVIS to take a picture. She pressed a kiss to Tony's head, draped a blanket over them, and left.

Natasha came in at eight, smiled fondly, and quietly asked JARVIS to take a picture before leaving again for the gym.

Bruce came in five minutes later, looking for breakfast, and quietly asked JARVIS to take a picture.

Thor came in at eight thirty with Jane and Darcy. Darcy took a picture herself of the adorable scene with her phone, and the three of them crept out again to let the inventor and the puppy sleep in peace.

Clint finally rolled out of bed at nine thirty, strolled into the common floor, and saw the adorable tableaux. He snickered quietly and asked JARVIS to take a picture. Five seconds later, Allie yawned and stretched, and clambered off of the inventor and the beanbag. She trotted over to Clint a bit unsteadily and looked up with big ole puppy eyes. He picked her up obligingly, and she wriggled into the pocket of his sweatshirt to continue sleeping. "Long night, sweetheart?" he murmured, and got no reply but the little flick of an ear.

"She had trouble sleeping and both the little miss and sir fell asleep around three thirty," JARVIS informed him.

"Thanks, JARVIS." Clint made himself breakfast and quietly left the room, the puppy still in his pocket.

Tony woke up at ten thirty, and immediately brought his hand up to check on Allie. She was gone. "JARVIS?" he croaked, staring blearily at the ceiling.

"It is ten thirty, sir. Allie is with Agents Barton and Romanoff."

"Ten thirty?" he asked, half-falling out of the beanbag. "Why didn't they wake me up?"

"I assume they saw Allie and kept quiet," JARVIS replied.

"Humph." He stood, stretched, and made a beeline for the coffee.

JARVIS refrained from telling him about the multiple copies of the pictures stored throughout the Tower.


	5. Chapter 5

A few days later, Jane and Darcy went to the park with Allie, since the superheroes were all on a mission and they needed to distract the anxious little girl. Allie had already panicked once because they'd left the TV on the news and she'd seen the Avengers fighting the yellow-suited AIM people. She'd started crying and asking if they were going to be all right, and then she'd begged JARVIS to help them because she didn't want to be alone again. Her tears had just about broken the AI's virtual heart, and he'd promised her that they would be safe.

She'd curled up in Clint's old sweater with her Cap plushie and her Bucky bear, and refused to move or eat or even watch Mulan, her favorite movie. Darcy, left to babysit her, was getting frantic, and then suggested the park. Allie perked up slightly, and stuck her head out. "Park?" she asked tearfully. "We can go play?"

"Yeah," Darcy said. "We can play at the park, whatever game you want."

"You gonna play lava monsters wif me?" Allie asked.

"Yeah, we can play lava monster." Darcy sighed in relief as Allie climbed out of her bundle of sweater and picked up her toys. "Let's ask Janey if she wants to come with us, okay?"

"Okay." Allie ran around looking for her shoes. She pulled them on, did up the Velcro straps, and grabbed her Bucky bear. "Ready!" she said.

"All right." Darcy grabbed her and swooped her up on her hip. "Let's go pry the scientist out of her lab."

Jane agreed to come only when Allie pulled out the puppy eyes and the pleading pout, and the three of them headed out to the park. They were well away from where the Avengers were fighting AIM, and there were a few kids at the park.

Darcy and Jane played lava monster with Allie, and then they played house. They'd set up the "house" on top of the play structure, and Allie insisted they needed flowers to stick in the holes of the plastic to make it pretty. "I get those," she said, pointing at the patch of dandelions on the other side of the playground. "Just two flowers."

"Fine, just two," Darcy sad. "Go and get them okay?"

"Yeah. C'mon, Bucky bear." Allie climbed down to get them, and ran across the playground as Darcy watched her.

Jane poked her to show her an update about the Avengers fight. "They're almost done," she said.

"Good," Darcy said, appreciating the picture of their brave heroes. She turned back to look at Allie. The little girl was gone. "Allie!" Darcy called, standing up in the play structure to find her. "Allie, where'd you go?"

No answer from the little girl.

Darcy's stomach dropped into the center of the earth. "Jane," she said numbly, "I think we lost Allie."

They jumped off the play structure and checked everywhere. The bathrooms were empty, the nearby stores hadn't seen her, and the kids playing on the swings hadn't seen anything. Darcy was practically crying. "I lost her!" she freaked out. "What are we going to do! We have to find her or Black Widow's going to literally kill me!"

"Chill," Jane told her firmly. She picked up her phone and dialed the tower.

JARVIS answered. "What can I do for you, Dr. Foster?"

"Allie's disappeared," Jane said. "We were in the park, glanced away, and she was gone. Can you use cameras, or something, to find her?"

"Doing so now," JARVIS said, sounding slightly panicked. "Alerting the Avengers."

On the battle field, Steve was systematically knocking out a tank, when JARVIS paged him. "Captain Rogers, Allie is missing," he said urgently.

Steve missed his swing, and nearly got exploded for his efforts. "What!" he yelled through the comm. "How?"

"Camera feeds suggest she was abducted."

"WHAT!" Steve yelled again.

"Ms. Lewis and Dr. Foster are returning to the tower," JARVIS said. "I am scanning for Allie now through all available resources, captain."

"All right." Steve's eyes narrowed. "We'll finish up here and be back at the tower ASAP."

"Understood sir." JARVIS signed off.

Steve returned to the main comms. "Avengers, listen up. Allie's been abducted from the park."

"WHAT!" Clint yelled from his sniper perch.

The Hulk let out an inarticulate cry of rage.

" _SO_ ," Steve said loudly, "we're going to wrap this up in the next five minutes. Go."

Within four minutes, thirty seconds, the fight was over and the AIM minions were astonished at how quickly the Avengers packed them up and left them for the authorities. Astonished and extremely terrified, to be precise.

The Avengers made it to the tower in record time and found a pacing, red-eyed Darcy and Jane in the living room. "I'm sorry!" Darcy said as soon as they came in the room. "I didn't mean to lose her!"

"We know, Darcy," Steve said distractedly. "JARVIS?"

He pulled up the footage from nearby traffic cams of the park. A white van was speeding away from the park. "I could not get an accurate picture of the driver," JARVIS said apologetically. "The car is a rental but I am scanning for records now."

"Keep on it," Tony ordered.

Coulson suddenly spoke up, his eyes lighting up with an idea. "Darcy, did she have her Bucky bear?"

"Yeah," Darcy said, "we didn't find it in the park."

Coulson grinned. "JARVIS, begin program Collectible-Tracking O9. You'll find the frequency in my files."

A holo screen popped up with a map and a blinking red dot.

"There she is," Coulson said, grinning.

Clint stared at his former handler. "You put a tracker in her _toy_?"

"I put a tracker in my Captain America _collectible_ ," Coulson corrected. "When I gave it to her, I never took it out."

"Location reads as a semi-abandoned truck stop," JARVIS reported. "Ten occupants. Based on the size of the heat signature, Allie is in a closed room by herself."

Clint picked up bow. "What are we waiting for? Let's go."

A~A~A~A

The Avengers were swift and ruthlessly efficient. Within ten minutes they'd arrived at the truck stop, captured all the kidnappers, and Thor had pulverized the lock on the only closed door.

Allie was in the corner, holding her Bucky bear tightly in her arms, tear tracks on her cheeks, her eyes and nose red from crying. As soon as the door opened she started to scream, but it broke off in a sob when Natasha burst through the door.

"Allie!" Natasha knelt to scoop the little girl off the ground and hold her close. "Shh, it's okay, _malyshka_ , everything's okay now, we've got you," she murmured, carrying her swiftly from the building and shielding the little girl from the sight of the unconscious men. She walked up the ramp to the quinjet and set Allie on the nearest seat.

Bruce was there waiting with a med kit and a scanner. "Are you hurt, sweetheart?" he asked gently, kneeling in front of her.

"I scawed," Allie sobbed, reaching for Natasha pitifully.

"I know, baby, I know," Natasha said, picking her up and pressing a kiss to her hair. "But the scary part's over now. No more scary stuff." She sat down with Allie in her lap, relief flooding through her body and replacing all the adrenaline.

"She's fine," Bruce said, sighing in relief. He put the medical scanner away and sat next to Natasha, the tension flooding from his shoulders. "Can I hold her?" he asked quietly, the Hulk still growling in the back of his mind.

Natasha passed her over reluctantly, and Allie cuddled into Bruce with a sniffle.

The reassuring weight and warmth of the child in his arms calmed Bruce's anger, and he reached up to card his fingers through her tangled hair. She sniffed and rested a damp cheek on his chest.

Natasha left Bruce to take care of Allie and went to interrogate the kidnappers. Thankfully, but also at the same time, horribly, the kidnappers were simply that. Kidnappers. They'd snatch kids from parks, hold them at the truck stop, demand two or three thousand dollars from the parents, and threaten to harm the kids if they involved the cops. Because the sum was so low, the parents always paid, and they'd never harmed a child.

"Not that that's going to help you any," Clint said darkly, shoving the men into a locked room till the cops arrived.

"All right, let's go," Steve said, as sirens were heard.

Clint was the first one on to the jet, and he made a beeline for Allie. "Hey, there's my baby girl," he said softly, reaching for her.

She latched onto him gladly and put her face in his shoulder. "I wanna go home," she sniffled.

"Yeah, we're going home, baby." He pressed his cheek to her hair and felt honest-to-goodness tears spring to his eyes in relief. He hadn't cried since Coulson's supposed death and even then only in private.

The others politely ignored his emotions, and Tony went up to fly the jet home.

Clint was grateful no one asked to hold her because he didn't think he could let go right now. He sat down on the bench and watched Allie fall asleep as he smoothed her hair. It had only been a couple of months but he realized he loved this little girl more than he'd ever loved anything or anyone in his entire life except- he looked up at Natasha. She was sitting next to him and leaning against his other shoulder.

She gave him a soft, knowing smile, and nodded.

He nodded. "I'm going to adopt her," he announced quietly, and tightened his grip on Allie as the others looked up at him.

"You want to?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. I may not be the best person, but, I really want to. Unless, you know, you or Tony want to, cuz you've got more-"

"You'll be great," Steve interrupted, giving him a wide grin.

Clint relaxed again. "Thanks, Steve."

"We'll get the paperwork started when we get home," Tony called, from the front of the jet. "Pepper's already got most of it prepped."

"Awesome." He looked at Natasha and raised an eyebrow.

She nodded.

He cleared his throat. "Natasha and I are going to do joint custody."

Then they looked a little surprised. Not a lot, just a little. "Don't you have to be, uh, married, to do that?" Bruce asked, tugging at his collar.

The superspies shared a smirk. "Technically we're already married," Natasha said casually.

The jet swerved as Tony jerked the plane. "What!" he yelled.

"Seriously?" Steve asked.

"It was for an op about five years ago," Clint said. "It had to be a real thing, so we got married in a courthouse. Hill and Coulson were witnesses. Then we did the op, finished up, and never really got it annulled."

"Why not?"

They both shrugged. "Married partners get better benefits," Natasha said simply.

"You guys are married," Steve said.

"Technically yep."

"Then how come you have two separate apartments and aren't, you know, together?"

"Because we're only technically married," Clint said. He looked down at Allie and then smiled at Natasha. "Would you like to get married for reals, Princess Wed Hair?"

She smirked and reached out to smooth Allie's soft hair. "Sure, Prince Purple Bow and Arrow." And she leaned over to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

Tony yelled from the front of the jet. "Did you just get engaged in the back of a quinjet!"

Thor laughed. "May Odin bless your union, my friends. Allie could not have better parents than you two."

"Thank you," Clint said, unable to stop grinning.

The ride back to the quinjet was brief, and as they filed out of the jet Steve stopped him in front of the elevator. "Let me take her, Clint, you need to go to medical."

"No it's fine, I got her."

Steve shot him a 'disappointed Cap' look. "Clint, you have to take care of yourself if you're going to take care of her, and I saw you take at least one bad hit." He held out a hand. "Let me take her, or Thor."

Clint reluctantly passed Allie over to his leader, and went to medical. He and Natasha walked away hand-in-hand, and had the satisfaction of watching Coulson do a double-take, drop his papers, and then have to sit down. "We're getting married," he informed his ex-handler. "And then we're adopting Allie."

Coulson put a hand to his face. "I turn off the comms ten minutes early and I miss all the good stuff," he lamented.

Natasha leaned over to kiss his cheek. "You can review it all on tape. JARVIS has it."

"Oh I will," Coulson said. "I want to see Barton's idea of a proposal."

Steve ignored them all and headed to the living quarters. He stopped by his own first, putting Allie down on the sofa for five minutes while he changed out of his uniform into sweats and a T-shirt. Then he took her to her room and started to tuck her into bed.

Allie woke up as he was pulling her shoes off, and she grabbed at his neck. "No," she said, hugging him tightly, "don't leave."

"Don't you want to take a nap, baby?" he asked, trying to tug her arms away.

"No," she said stubbornly, and wrapped her legs around his torso like a leech. "Stay, Steeb."

He sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, letting her sit on his lap. "All right, fine. How about a bath? That way you can get clean and play with your sailboats, okay?"

She eyed him suspiciously. "You won't leave?"

"I won't leave," he promised.

So Steve sat on the closed toilet lid and wrote his report on the mission while Allie played in the bathtub with her sailboats and water fairy squirt gun. She drilled him in the ear with soapy water and giggled. "Sorry Steeb."

He rubbed at his ear with a towel. "It's okay, baby doll. You all clean?"

"Nope." She squeezed some strawberry-scented shampoo into her hands. She'd learned to lather and rinse her own hair, albeit sloppily, and they let her practice. This time though, she held her soapy hand out to Steve. "You wash my hair?" she asked.

"You can do it, Allie."

"No," she said, pressing the soap into his hand, "you do it."

He very, very gently washed and rinsed her hair, and watched in amusement as her eyes closed and she leaned against the side of the tub, almost completely boneless.

"It makes me sweepy," she complained, and then yawned.

"When you get out you can go to sleep, okay?"

"Kay." She yawned again.

He drained the water from the tub and turned the sailboats upside down to dry while she dried off and changed into a pair of flower print pajamas. "All right," Steve said, picking her up. "Bed time?"

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're not going to leave?" she asked.

"I promise I won't," he said, rubbing her back soothingly. "You want to watch some TV? Mulan?"

She nodded.

He sat down with her in the beanbag, and they shared Cheerios straight from the bag. "Allie, can I ask you a question?" he asked gently.

"Mm-hm," she hummed, involved in the story of the epic girl warrior.

"Why didn't you turn into a bird, or a snake, and run away?" Steve asked gently.

She turned big, beseeching eyes up to him. "I was scawed they'd catch me and tink I was a fweak and den hurt me. So I didn't. And I gave them JARBIS' phone number when dey asked but dey didn't beliebe me." She started to cry again. "I was really scawed."

"No, shh, baby doll, it's okay." He cuddled her close. "I know it was very scary but you were so brave. You were so brave, sweetheart, you made us all very proud. I'm so glad we got you back safe."

"You saved me," she whimpered.

"Yes we did," Steve said, smoothing her hair. "We will _always_ save you," he whispered fiercely. "No matter what happens, we will always be there for you. I promise." He kissed her cheek. "I promise."

She rested her cheek on his shoulder and sniffed a couple more times. Then, she was out like a light, worn out from the emotions of the day.

He changed Mulan to a documentary about the Beatles' and let himself finally relax out of 'Captain America leader protector' mode. Now he was just Steeb, taking care of his best friends' soon-to-be-adopted child. He smiled as he thought about it. Clint had found her and loved her first, and Natasha had loved her second and most fiercely. Steve decided that he came in on a pretty close third, and bent to press a kiss to Allie's head. He sighed wistfully. If things had been different, maybe he would've married a nice girl (Peggy, his mind supplied), had a couple kids, and be able to do this full-time. If Clint hadn't spoken up, he would've adopted Allie, and gladly. But Clint and Natasha needed her more than he did; he'd settle for favorite uncle. He grinned. There was going to be stiff competition for that spot. Of course it all depended on Allie's decision.

He glanced up at the ceiling. "JARVIS?" he said, sotto voce.

"Yes Captain?" JARVIS asked quietly.

"Can you ask Clint and Tasha how they want to break the news to Allie about adopting her?"

JARVIS was silent for a few moments, talking to the others, and then replied, "They would be grateful if you could broach the subject with the little miss and get her opinion on the matter before they ask her directly."

Steve nodded. "I'll do it."

"Thank you Captain."

Then J added, "I, for one, am very glad that she is unharmed."

"Us too JARVIS, us too."

True to his word, Steve didn't leave Allie alone for a second. Halfway through the documentary she shifted from child to kitten, and curled up into a ball, her head resting on his sternum. When he stood up to get some food, he carefully shifted her to his sweater pocket. She didn't even stir.

It wasn't until the end of the documentary that Allie woke up. She dug her tiny kitten claws into the fabric of the shirt and yawned.

He carefully lifted her from the pocket and held her up face to face. "Feel better?" he asked gently.

She gave a little cat chirp, and tried to curl up in his palm.

He shifted her to his chest, and let JARVIS put on Mulan again.

She watched the screen with rapt attention, and when the song 'I'll Make a Man Out of You' came on, she changed from kitten to girl to be able to sing along.

Steve smiled, watching her copy the motions of the cartoons. He'd have to talk to Natasha about getting Allie started on some basic self-defense moves so that nothing like this ever happened again.

The song finished, and Allie flopped onto his knee, resting her back against his chest. "Steeb?" she asked, picking up one of his hands and tracing the lines in his palm.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Where's everybody?"

"Well, Thor is taking a shower, and Bruce is very tired so he's sleeping, Tony is fixing his suit, and Clint and Natasha are at the doctor's."

"Are they hurt?" she asked worriedly.

"Just some bruises," Steve said. "They're okay. They'll be done in a little bit and then they'll be back, okay?"

She sighed. "I don't wike it when you go fight, Steeb."

He sighed and pulled her close. "I know, sweetheart, but we've got to."

"Why?"

"To protect people."

"Me?"

"Everybody, doll." He smoothed her hair. "Do you remember when you decided to come find us?"

"Yeah."

"Do you remember _why_ you decided to come find us?"

"Because you're the Avengers! You help people!"

"Exactly. And we helped you, right?"

"Right."

"So what if somebody needed help from bad guys but we didn't go? What would happen?"

Allie's eyes grew wide. "Bad stuff," she breathed in horror.

"Exactly. To protect you and everybody else, we have to go. But I promise, Allie, that I'll try my hardest to bring everybody back home safely."

"And you too," she said.

"And me too," he echoed.

She nodded. "Good. Everybody needs to always come home. Clint and Natasha and Bwuce and Tony and Thor and Steeb. The Avengers!" She punched her little fist up in the air triumphantly.

He smiled. "And Allie, the littlest Avenger!" He tickled her ribs gently.

She shrieked with laughter and tried to get away.

He stopped tickling her, and let her settle back onto his lap. "Hey Allie, you like living with us, right?"

"Yeah." She tilted her head back to smile at him. "I loves you all, lots."

"We love you too, Allie. And remember how Mrs. Riker talked about adoption?"

"Yeah. That I stay forever and ever."

"Yep." He took a deep breath. "How would you like it if Clint and Natasha adopted you?"

Her eyes grew wide. "Both?" she asked eagerly. "Both of them adopt me?"

"Yeah. A daddy and a mommy. What do you think?"

She looked dazed. "Daddy and mommy. Mommy and daddy. But...they need to get mawwied first," was the first thing her little brain came up with.

Steve laughed. He couldn't help it. "You're right, doll, but after that? Would you like that?"

She nodded. "And you 'dopt me too, Steeb? And Tony and Bwuce and Thor?"

Steve winced internally, but just shook his head. "That's not how it works, baby girl."

"Oh," she said sadly. "But we still be a family?"

"Yes," he said, holding her close. "We can be uncles, though. How's that?"

"Okay, Uncle Steeb," she said, and then made a face. "No. Just Steeb. Still uncle, but just Steeb."

Steve grinned. "Okay."

At that moment Clint and Natasha came in, the former sporting a discreet bandage on his forehead.

Allie jumped off of Steve's lap and ran towards them. "Daddy! Mommy!"

The two spies froze in their tracks and it was only Clint's honed reflexes that caught her and swooped her up in his arms before she could crash into their legs.

Allie hugged him tightly. "You be my daddy?" she asked.

Clint's eyes turned suspiciously bright. "Yeah."

She turned to Natasha. "And you be my mommy?" she asked.

"Would you like that?" Natasha asked, almost awkwardly.

Allie answered the question by leaping from Clint's arms to Natasha's, and hugging her tightly. "Yes," she said, "yes yes yes yes _yes_."

Natasha hugged her close and smiled. "Okay."

Clint hugged both of them.

Steve grinned. "JARVIS, picture," he whispered.

That picture remains in the Avengers photo album to this day.

 **A/N: This is all I have written so far. I'm going to finish up the story with another chapter or so, and then maybe a couple of one-shots for future life. Stay tuned!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Another chapter of fluffy fluffiness :)**

The next day, Clint dropped into Tony's workshop via the vent. "Hey Tony."

Tony bolted out of his half-dozing position. "Clint! How did you- stop going in the vents, man."

"I need your help," Clint said.

"Already tired of your married life with kids?" Tony asked.

"Nope," Clint said promptly. "I want to find Natasha a ring."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "You know you two are doing this all backward," he said. "First you got a kid, now you're getting her a ring?"

"And then we kind of want to renew our vows," Clint said. "Since they were fake-ish the last time."

Tony rolled his eyes. "What kind of jewels does she like?"

"Diamonds," Clint said. "And rose gold."

"I'll recommend my jeweler to you," Tony replied, throwing a holographic screen towards Clint with the website already up. "Here, look through that."

Clint poked through pictures for a while, making little 'hm' noises once in a while.

Tony glanced at him awkwardly. "You, uh, have the money to buy this thing on government salary?" he asked. "I don't want you to be bankrupt before your kid hits college."

Clint smirked. "Remember all those years I was a mercenary for hire?" he asked. "I've got enough to retire to a private island if I wanted to."

"Oh." Tony nodded. "Good for you. Not the hired mercenary part, but the money part."

"Yes thank you Stark." He enlarged a photo of a simple rose gold ring with a diamond in the center. The setting looked vaguely like a spider. He smiled. "This one."

"Good choice," Tony said. "It's beautiful."

JARVIS worked with Clint to order it, and that was that.

That week they renovated the living floor where Barton and Romanoff lived, and turned the suites into one large apartment, with one master bedroom and a room for Allie right across the hall. It was slightly bigger than her old room but it was decorated just the same, with the addition of a photo wall. The one two pictures up so far were one of Allie and her new parents, and one of Allie and the Avengers.

A~A~A~A

One day, Allie woke up and decided to be a bird. She was a beautiful blue bird with black feathers on her wings, and she fit in Clint's open palm, fluffing her feathers adorably with her little beak. She chirped up at him happily.

His heart melted, and he kissed her little head. "You are the cutest bird ever," he told her.

She cheeped, fluttered her wings, and landed on his shoulder, her little feet catching into his T-shirt. She nestled into the crook of his neck happily.

He let her sit there while he fixed his coffee and walked down to the common room, the tiny ball of heat against his neck making him smile like an idiot. "Good morning," he announced to the still-sleepy Avengers.

"Morning," Steve said, not looking up from his paper. "Where's Allie?"

The little blue bird flew to Steve and landed in front of him.

Steve smiled. "Allie?"

She hopped forward and preened.

"You hungry doll?" Steve asked.

She shook her head and went to sit in Bruce's mop of unruly curls.

The scientist merely smiled and continued to eat his oatmeal.

Clint snapped a picture to show to Natasha later.

A~A~A~A

A week later, the diamond ring had been safely delivered to the Tower, and hidden in Steve's sock drawer. Two days after that, the Avengers, Coulson, Jane, Darcy, and Allie gathered in the hall at eleven AM. Before Thor and everybody, Clint and Natasha renewed their vows, and Clint presented his wife with the ring he'd picked out. She loved it, and kissed him in front of everybody.

They had a reception in the banquet hall in the next room, and there was dancing and food provided by Stark. Pepper had planned all of it, and she was thrilled that everything was working out perfectly. The "newlyweds" had their first dance, and then Clint danced with his new daughter. After that, everyone cheerfully flooded onto the dance floor.

Allie sat with Coulson and Darcy for a while, and then Tony very formally asked her to dance. She accepted, and he twirled her around on the dance floor as she giggled madly.

Darcy caught them at the end of the dance and held out a hand. "May I cut in, Mr. Stark?"

Tony bowed out gracefully, and Allie giggled as she and Darcy danced a shortened version of the Cupid Shuffle. Pepper got a picture of that for the photo wall, and one later, when Clint was holding a drowsy Allie and he and Natasha were dancing the last slow waltz of the night.

The "newlyweds" bowed out after they'd said goodnight to Allie, and headed off for two weeks on an undisclosed honeymoon, since their original honeymoon was a mission in Croatia.

Allie was perfectly happy to stay with her "uncles" for those two weeks, and found herself pleasantly spoiled by Coulson, Tony, Thor, Steve, and Bruce, in that order.

A~A~A~A

When Natasha and Clint came home two weeks later, they were greeted by a quiet Tower. "Where is everyone?" Clint asked. He would've thought at least Allie would've come to give them hugs.

JARVIS spoke up. "Thor and Captain Rogers are buying groceries, Agent Coulson and Dr. Banner are in the gym, and Sir is with the little miss in his lab."

Clint paled. "The lab? Alone?"

"I am keeping a very close eye on both of them, Agent Barton," JARVIS said primly. "I would not allow any harm to come to the little miss."

"Thanks, J," Clint said, giving the ceiling a quick grin.

The two of them stopped at their floor to drop off their suitcases, and went up to Tony's lab. They stopped in the doorway to smile at the scene in front of them.

Allie was wrapped in a small white lab coat, sitting at one of the stools in front of Tony's workspace, and next to her was Dummy. Tony sat on the other stool, and all three of them were carefully assembling what looked like a..

"What are you building, _malyshka_?" Natasha asked, giving them an amused smile.

"Mommy!" Allie jumped from her stool and ran to Natasha and Clint.

Natasha scooped her up and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Hi, baby. Did you miss us?"

"Yes, yes, yes, kind of," Allie said, with all the honesty of childhood. She planted a kiss on Natasha's cheek and hugged her tightly.

"What about me, punkin?" Clint asked, giving her an exaggerated pout.

Allie leaned over to hug him and he scooped her up, blowing a raspberry on her neck as she screeched happily. "I missed you too, daddy. Kind of."

"Kind of?" Clint asked. "Why kind of?"

She smiled guilelessly. "Because dey let me has pancakes and ice cream for breakfast every day you were gone."

Tony hid behind his robots as Natasha turned to him. "First of all, that was Coulson. Second of all, her little pout is _killer_. If our villains decided to copy it, we'd all be conquered."

She glared at him, and then turned to Allie. "What were you and Uncle Tony building?" she asked.

"A robot," Allie said proudly. "From scratch and everytin'."

"A robot? What for?"

"For science," Allie said, grinning.

"She's learning robotics, engineering, and basic programming with me," Tony said. "I'm going to give it a dialed-down version of JARVIS that will keep her safe whenever she has it with her."

"Awesome," Clint said. He kissed Allie's head. "But now it's time for lunch, don't you think?"

"Lunch!" she cheered, wriggling down to the floor. She kissed Dummy on the claw and ran out the doors.

"No running in the labs!" Tony called after her, and shooed the others away. "Go, have lunch, reconnect with your child. She's starting to learn to read, by the way."

"We were only gone for two weeks," Natasha said, impressed.

"Yeah well, you left four geniuses and a ninja agent in charge of your kid. What'd you expect?"

 **A/N 2: I'm taking plot suggestions for the next few chapters, if anyone has any ideas for cute interactions or character growth.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Reading time with our favorite gamma physicist! Also, pool party!**

"One, day, a man, and, his, ro-bot, robot, dog, went, for, a, wa-l-k, walk, and-" Allie sighed and pushed the book towards Bruce. "You wead it," she sighed. "I's too slow."

Bruce smiled and pushed the book back in her direction. "You've got to read it, sweetheart, or else you're not going to learn to read fast. You just have to be patient."

"No patient," Allie pouted, and turned into a dog.

Bruce resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Allie, you can be a dog, but you're still going to practice reading."

She double-pouted and gave him puppy-eyes, as a puppy. It was highly effective.

Bruce frowned. "Allie, that might work with Tony or Steve, but your puppy-eyes aren't going to work with me."

She pouted some more, and rolled on her back, asking for belly-rubs.

He picked her up and cradled her in his lap. "You're still going to practice reading," he told her.

She whined.

He sighed. "How about this?" he asked. "I'll read you the story, so you'll know how it ends, and then you can re-read it, okay?"

She jumped out of his lap and paced around the edges of the rug, obviously thinking about it.

Bruce had to hide his grin.

Allie turned into a girl again after a few more seconds. "Okay," she said, and sat down again. "Tank you," she added. She crawled into his lap and looked at him expectantly.

He read her the story, talked it over with her, they had a snack, and then she carefully read the entire story. He had to say; at least she knew how to stick to her compromises.

After that, learning-time was over and she went off to play with her real robot-dog in the living room.

Bruce found Clint and Natasha in the kitchen, making eyes at each other over the salad they were making. "Did you know you're raising a miniature manipulative spy?" he asked, amused.

Natasha grinned. "That's my girl. What did she do?"

Bruce told them, and the adults all laughed.

"As long as she's doing her schoolwork and not completely trying to get her own way," Clint said seriously.

Bruce nodded. "We'll keep an eye out."

Natasha smiled at him. "Thank you Bruce."

He returned the smile.

Allie ran in to the kitchen, her robot-dog under her arm like a football. "Mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom."

"Yes _kotenok_?"

Allie stopped and blinked at her, confused. "I'm not a kitten right now, mama."

Clint snickered and Natasha smirked. "What is it, baby?"

She frowned. "I fowgot."

"All right, well, tell me when you remember, okay?"

"Kay." She zoomed out again, and then zoomed back in a second later. "I remember!" she announced. "Can we go swimming, mommy?"

"Swimming?" Natasha echoed. There was a pool but no one really used it. Tony hadn't had a 'pool party' since before the Battle of Manhattan. "I don't see why not." She looked at Clint. "Did we get her a swim suit?"

"Yep." Clint scooped Allie up and kissed her forehead. "Let's go look for it and we'll go swimming thirty minutes after lunch. Okay?"

"Why thirty minutes?" she asked.

"To let lunch settle down."

"Oh."

They came back a few minutes later, Allie wearing an adorable one-piece swimsuit with polka-dots and a pair of cotton shorts over it. Clint was wearing outrageous Hawaiian print shorts and a black T-shirt.

"Lunch!" Natasha said, putting the grilled cheese and the salad in front of Allie.

Allie cleaned her plate, put it in the sink, and looked at them expectantly.

"What, sweetie?" Bruce asked.

"Aren't you going to put on your swimsuit too?" Allie asked.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "You want me to come too?"

"Everybody," Allie said. "Steeb and Tony and Pepper and Thor and Darcy and Jane, and Cou-son, and you. Everybody's gotta come to the pool party. Tony said. Pwease Bwuce?"

"All right," Bruce said, giving her a smile. "Just as soon as I finish my sandwich."

Allie watched cartoons and kept one eye on the digital clock JARVIS obligingly displayed for her. She wanted to see everybody in their swimsuits, and made sure they all followed her down to the pool when it was thirty minutes after lunch.

Darcy looked great in her zigzag one piece swimsuit, and she enthusiastically taught Allie the doggy paddle. Jane wore a dark blue bikini, and talked buoyancy equations with Bruce and Thor in the deep end of the pool. Thor was wearing an equally-outrageous pair of swim shorts, and Bruce wore a pair of conservative dark green shorts, to Tony's everlasting glee. Tony chose bright red and gold ones, and a dark red T-shirt to cover the arc reactor, predictably, and Pepper was amazing in a light blue one-piece. Steve was wearing a pair of black swim shorts, and his abs alone were making Darcy increasingly incoherent. Natasha was wearing a perfect black one-piece that was tailored to her form, with a single dark purple stripe down the side, and Clint could barely keep his eyes off her.

"Newlyweds," Tony scoffed under his breath, scooping Allie away from the awestruck Darcy and taking her on a piggyback ride around the shallow end of the pool.

Allie giggled and hung onto him tightly. "Hi Cou-son," she said, waving as they passed the lounge chair where Coulson sat in a T-shirt and a pair of black swim shorts. He looked completely relaxed and he was even reading a paperback instead of his eternal series of reports.

"Hi Allie," Coulson replied, waving back at her.

Tony dropped her in Bruce's arms after the piggy back ride. "Here, Brucie, have a present." He swam back to Pepper's side and pressed a kiss to her neck. "Hello, dear."

"Hey Bruce?" Allie asked, floating easily with her arm floaties.

"Yeah?"

"Why did Tony and Pepper get married if she calls him not-grownup?" Allie asked innocently.

Bruce laughed, almost slipped on the pool tiles, and hung onto Thor's bicep, trying to stop his chuckles. Thor laughed, and helped Bruce back to his feet, and encircled Jane when she almost doubled over with snickers.

Allie frowned at the laughing trio. "What?" she asked indignantly. "Why's funny?"

Bruce steadied, and gave her a hug. "It's funny because Tony isn't the get-married type."

"Why?"

"Because... I don't know."

"Why?"

Bruce sighed and snickered again. "I don't know."

"Maybe you should ask Tony," Thor suggested, his eyes twinkling.

"Good idea," Bruce said, grinning. "Go ask Tony, baby."

Allie nodded solemnly, and doggy-paddled away to where Tony, Pepper, Steve, and the two super spies were chatting.

Jane laughed and hid her face in Thor's shoulder. "You are such a troll, son of Odin," she snickered.

From across the pool, Bruce watched in amusement as Tony turned red, Pepper started to giggle, Clint started howling, Steve joined him, and Natasha went stone-faced trying to keep from laughing. Coulson, curious, put down his book to stare at the group, confused.

Bruce started to snicker, and laugh, and he laughed until tears were running down his face. He felt the Other Guy startle from the amount of emotion, but he subsided into a pleased grumble after a moment, and Bruce continued laughing.

"Sure, sure, laugh it up," Tony muttered, his ears turning red. "Pepper, why _did_ you marry me?"

Pepper laughed and put her arms around his neck. "I think you know why."

"Because I'm a mature individual," he replied confidently.

She rolled her eyes. "Sure, Tony."

Clint wrapped an arm around Natasha's waist. "Did you marry me because I'm mature, babe?"

She raised a delicate eyebrow. "Since just yesterday were drinking Allie's juice boxes, I'm going to have to say no, Agent Barton."

He gave an exaggerated sigh. "Good." He kissed her temple and moved away. "All right, Allie-bear, do you want to learn how to do the breaststroke?" He grabbed Allie's hands gently and walked backwards, tugging her into a clear part of the pool.

Once Allie got tired of swimming and sat with Coulson on a lounge chair, Steve and Thor had a swimming contest, twenty laps across the pool. Thor won, by a smidgen, and was crowned king of the pool.

After that, Tony decided to fire up the grill on the roof, and they adjourned outside to grill hot dogs and steaks. Allie took a nap, comfortably held by Thor, who could keep holding her forever and never even get tired, and they all were comfortably stuffing their faces, when the elevator door opened to the roof and a trenchcoat-ed Fury stepped onto the roof.

The relaxed air of the party vanished immediately and the superheroes stiffened.

"Well," Fury drawled, "I never thought I'd see my best agent in swim gear, or a god cuddling a mutant child."

Thor's grip on Allie tightened protectively, and Clint stepped in front of the thunder god.

"What's up, Dread-Pirate Roberts?" Tony asked expansively, his cold gaze completely at odds with his tone.

"Just wanted to see how my right hand is doing," Fury said calmly. "If he's ready to get back to work."

"He is working," Tony retorted, holding out a hand to stop Coulson from answering. "Can't you see out of that one eye, Fury? He's the adult influence in this group."

"Your two months of light duty are up," Fury said, looking at Coulson. "We need you on a mission in Bosnia-"

"No," Tony said flatly.

"No, what?" Fury asked. "I don't think you have any say over what I do with my agents."

"Uh, yes, I do," Tony said. "He's not your agent, he's _our_ handler. No takesie-backsies."

The other Avengers made a protective circle around Coulson. They all knew that even though Coulson didn't say anything, he was not ready for anything concerning active agent duty. He still got tired much too easily.

"No takesie-backsies," Allie echoed, from Thor's arms.

Fury raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you know about it, Miss Barton?"

She raised her chin defiantly. "I know dat Cou-son is a superhero, and he's part of de Avengers. And you can't hab him, pirate spy."

Fury gave her his best glare.

She glared right back at him, all four-year-old righteous fury, no pun intended, and stuck her tongue out at him.

Pepper bit the inside of her cheek so hard to stop from smiling, she drew blood, but she managed to keep her poker face.

Fury sighed. "Fine. You can keep Coulson as your handler." He glared at Clint and Natasha instead. "You two had better be giving her the necessary self-defense training to go with that attitude, or she's going to have too many problems for even you to handle." He turned on his heel, and left the tower.

"His face," Pepper said, her voice choked. "Did you see his face?"

Coulson walked over and solemnly planted a kiss on Allie's forehead. "Allie, thank you very much."

"You stay wif family," Allie said firmly, hugging him.

"Yeah. Family." He drew back after a moment. "Want a s'more?"

"Yeah."

A~A~A~A

The next day, Natasha started her daughter on self-defense training. For some unknown reason, every other Avengers was also in the gym when Natasha and Allie hit the mats, Allie dressed in a tiny pair of gym shorts and a tank top.

"All right Allie, first we're going to warm up, okay?"

They ran laps around the gym, and then did some stretching, and then Natasha started her on some simple boxing combinations. "Now if someone tries to grab you, you have to aim for their vulnerable parts, okay?"

"What's vulnable?" Allie asked, scrunching up her nose.

"Uh, weak."

"Like deir private parts?"

"Yes."

"But that's owie."

"That's why you have to hit them there," Natasha explained patiently. "That way they'll focus on their owie instead of on you."

"Oh. Okay." Allie put up her little fists and squared up. "Do it again?"

They practiced, and then Natasha called Tony over to spar against her.

"Why me?" Tony whined. "I don't wanna get hit."

"You're the only one here that isn't trained in actual fighting styles besides boxing, which doesn't work in your suit. You need training, also, by the way."

"I'm on that," Steve called, from the weights area on the other side of the room.

Tony frowned. "So I'm the only normal one in this whole group?"

"Yes." Natasha adjusted Allie's posture gently, and stepped off the mat. "Okay. Go."

To no one's surprise, Allie knocked Tony down, ran like the wind, turned into a bird, and flew up to the highest spot on the ceiling.

Everyone clapped, and Steve helped a wincing Tony off the ground. "We'll start tomorrow, 0700," Steve said, clapping the billionaire on the back.

Tony groaned. "Ow."

Allie flew back to her mother's side, turned into her human form, and looked up at Natasha expectantly.

Natasha gave her a high-five. "Good job, sweetheart."

They finished off the workout with stretches, and Natasha promised that tomorrow, Steve would show her how to use the punching bag.

Her self-defense classes continued, and Allie was capable of shape-shifting to have a heavier mass, which would take her possible attackers by surprise.

JARVIS also had a good idea, and showed her various holograms of Dobermans and German Shepherds. With JARVIS's help, and Clint taking her to a local dog shelter, Allie learned how to shift into the forms of those two ferocious looking dogs, and actually managed to scare a maintenance worker when she was trotting down the hall.

A~A~A~A

Allie got interested in her special powers, after that, and when Clint walked into the living room one day, he was confronted by a small dragon; an honest-to-Thor dragon, with red scales and a four-foot wingspan, breathing little puffs of smoke into the air. The ventilation system was whirring full blast.

"Whoa," Clint said, impressed. "How'd you do that?"

"That was actually my fault," Tony said, from the other sofa. "We were watching Sinbad and the Seven Seas. There were dragons."

"Rawr," Allie said, folding her wings and wrapping her tail around Clint's ankle.

"Hi, punkin," Clint said. "That's awesome, by the way."

The dragon hid her face in embarrassment.

"Aww," Tony cooed, and snapped a picture with his tablet.

Clint scratched the dragon's soft scaled head. "Let's not tell your mom you can do this, kay baby?"

A~A~A~A


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hiya. Have some fluff :)**

"Whatcha doin' Steeb?"

Steve let Allie crawl over the couch and curl into his side, and put an arm around her. "Homework," he replied placidly, scrolling down on the tablet.

"You not in school," Allie said, "why do you have homework?"

He gave her a brief smile. "I've only been out of the ice for three months, baby, I've got lots of catching up to do."

"What ice?"

He sighed, and explained what had happened in the war for him to end up in the 21st century. His chest ached as he told Allie stories about the brave Peggy Carter and the dashing Bucky Barnes, and he found himself choking up when he told her that he'd woken up, alone, in this new century.

"No," Allie said, wiping away his tears gently. "No, no, you not alone, Steeb." She wiped her own tears on his shirt, and cuddled into his arms. "You has me, and the team, and everybody."

"Yes I do," he said, kissing the top of her head, feeling some of that ache go away. "But sometimes it still makes me sad, to remember."

She nodded. "Like when you have nightmares?" she asked.

Steve winced. "How do you know about my nightmares, Allie?"

"I was puppy, sleeping, and I heard you yelling." She buried her face in his shoulder. "It's okay, Steeb."

"Yeah." He put a gentle hand on the back of her head. "It's okay now." He felt her breathing slow, and she turned into a puppy, curled up on the crook of his neck. She whimpered, buried her cold nose into his neck, and fell asleep. He smiled. "All right then." He bent his head to his tablet again, and then he heard a soft snort. He looked up.

Clint was standing there, leaning against the doorframe, his smirk on full blast but his eyes tender as he looked at his little girl. "She's something else," he remarked. "We've been trying to get you to open up and heal since the day after the battle but Allie can get you to cry in half an hour."

"It's not-" Steve started, bristling.

"And yeah, we get it, you're the leader of this misfit band, and you think you have to do it all by yourself, but for Pete's sake, Steve, it's not going to kill you to let us help you." Clint matched Steve's glare, and glared right back at him until Steve dropped his gaze. Suddenly he looked just like the twenty-six-year-old that he was, and Clint's gaze softened. "Aw, Steve, don't do the kicked puppy look, you know we can't handle it."

Steve gave him a wry grin. "Thanks, Clint."

"Don't mention it." Clint reached out for Allie. "Here, I'll let you study in peace."

"Wait." Steve put out a hand. "What's the deal with Croatia? I don't understand why there's so much fighting. Were you ever on a mission there? Can you-"

Clint grinned and sat down. "Allow me to tell you a thing."

When Allie woke up from her nap, she was surprised to hear Clint and Steve talking strategy at a hundred miles per hour. She jumped off Steve's shoulder, stretched, turned into a cat, stretched some more, all the way to the end of her tail, and pounced on the stuffed duck which was still her favorite toy. She picked it up in her mouth and trotted out of the living room, leaving the two semi-military types to their discussion.

A~A~A~A

After that, there was a shift in the dynamics in the tower. Steve opened up, started to ask questions by the dozen, and even contemplated going to college for that art degree he'd started seventy years ago. Tony got intensely interested in making sure that Steve Rogers was up to date, and pushed for the military to release Captain Rogers' back pay ("actually you're a Brigadier General, now, Steve, since you were listed MIA and not KIA, thanks to dear old dad"), get him discharged with full honors and a pension, and got all his records updated to list him as a living person ("because SOMEBODY whose name starts with F and ends with URY was trying to keep you firmly under his thumb by having to depend on SHIELD for all your expenses and if there's one thing I hate it's people trying to control my friends, so there, Fury").

And in return, Steve was there every time someone needed to talk. Every time Tony wanted to get drunk and was missing Pepper and absolutely did not want to talk about his horrible childhood. Every time Bruce was having a hard time controlling his inner rage or uncertainty about his place on the team. Every time Clint was worried that Loki's mind control wasn't fully gone, or that he'd fail Natasha or Allie. Every time that Natasha worried that the Red Room had broken her. Every time that Thor felt unworthy of being on the team if he couldn't even help his own brother. Every time Coulson woke up, gasping, a hand over the hole in his chest.

And they were there for him. And Allie loved them all unconditionally, and always had time for cuddles.

A~A~A~A

"I's got a lovely bunch of co-ker-nuts, doodly-doodly, here dey are standing in a row, bum bum bum..." Allie painted another line of green onto her paper, singing along to The Lion King happily. "Big ones, small ones, ones dat fall on your head... bum bum bum."

Thor followed the sound of happy singing and went into the kitchen, where Allie was watching Disney sing-alongs on her tablet and painting on big pieces of paper on the table. He watched in amusement as she absently pushed her hair away from her face, leaving a bright pink streak of paint across her forehead. "What are you making?" he asked.

She gave a shriek and dropped belly-down on her painting, hiding it from his view. "Nuuuuu," she said, covering it desperately. "Itsa surprise, Thor, go'way."

He smiled and kissed her hair. "I only came for a snack, dear heart, I promise I will not look."

She gave him a doubtful look. "You promise?"

"I promise." He grabbed a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter, and left the kitchen. He heard the strains of Aladdin come on.

"A whole new wooooold," Allie started singing.

He poked his head back in, and snapped a picture with his phone. "You are supervising, JARVIS?" he asked quietly, standing outside the door.

"Yes, your highness," JARVIS assured him.

It wasn't two hours later that the Avengers were called to a Very Important Meeting. JARVIS wouldn't tell anyone what it was about, only that it was Allie's wish that they gather on the common floor. Naturally, everyone went.

They all sat down on the couches and chairs, and waited curiously for their littlest resident to appear.

Allie shuffled in a moment later, carrying a large stack of papers and looking very serious. The illusion was spoiled by the fact that she was covered nearly head-to-toe in paint. "Tank you all for coming," she said seriously, setting the stack of papers down as she faced her superhero family.

"Why are we here, sweetheart?" Pepper asked.

"Today is the fwee-month annivewsary of being a family," Allie replied, picking at a spot of paint on her shirt. "And I made everybody a painting. To com- como- JARBIS?"

"Commemorate," JARVIS said gently.

"Dat." She held up the first painting. "Dis is for mommy. And dis is for daddy. And dis one's for you, and you, and you, wait no dis is Tony's, dis one's yours..." She handed them all out quickly, and went to snuggle with her daddy, getting paint on Clint's T-shirt.

He didn't mind though. He was too busy smiling at the picture. It was a four-year-old's version of an archery range. There was an archer (him) shooting targets while a smaller figure (Allie) sat on his shoulders. That had been a great day.

Everoyne else received similar one-on-one portraits. In Natasha's, mother and daughter were reading a bedtime story. Bruce had one of him and Allie doing math together. Tony's picture plainly depicted him and Allie building her robo-dog. Thor's was of her and Thor playing catch. Steve and Allie were drawing together. Coulson's was of him doing reports and holding a blob (puppy?) in his lap. Jane's took place in space, and Darcy's was at the park. And Pepper's was of her and Allie at a desk. Even JARVIS got one: Allie surrounded by blue shapes that were clearly holograms.

Thor was the first to speak up. "I will cherish this," he said gently. "Thank you Allie. Thank you very much."

She blushed and hid behind Clint as everyone else joined in, thanking her and praising her artwork.

"Maybe we should send her to art school instead of MIT," Tony said, inspecting the accuracy of the robo-dog.

Clint shifted her to sit on his lap and kissed a clean spot on her hair. "Guess what, pumpkin?"

"What?"

"Your mom and I had the same idea." He grinned as Natasha presented Allie with a small box.

"For me?" Allie asked, eyes lighting up.

"Go ahead and open it baby," Natasha urged.

She opened it eagerly, and giggled happily when she saw it: a beautiful bracelet with little charms on it of different animals. "Is so pretty, mommy," she said, showing it to Darcy, who 'aww'ed appreciatively. "Can I wear it?"

Natasha smiled slightly. "Maybe you should take a bath first, okay?"

Allie nodded. "Yeah."

Natasha carefully handed her painting to Coulson, scooped up her daughter, and carried her away for bath-time.

Tony got up to go to the kitchen, and stopped in the doorway. "Uhhhhh... not it!" He turned tail and ran out the door, painting fluttering in his wake.

"What?" Darcy got up to investigate, let out a yelp, took a picture, and hot-footed it out of there.

The remaining adults shared a wary glance and went into the kitchen. The table was covered in paint. So was the floor. The cabinets were splattered by random paint sprays. Even the ceiling had two bright drips of paint.

"Not it!" half a dozen people chorused, and suddenly it was only Clint and Thor standing in the kitchen.

Clint sighed. "All righty then."

Thor chuckled. "Supervising, JARVIS?"

JARVIS sounded smug. "Well I don't exactly have arms, your highness."

Thor chuckled and scooped up a bunch of paint brushes to wash in the sink. He looked back at Clint, who was smiling crookedly at the paint splashes on the table. "What is on your mind, friend archer?" he asked. "You're not going to punish Allie for making a mess, are you?"

"No, no way, man." Clint shook his head vehemently. "It's all washable. No," the smile returned to his lips, "I was just thinking that I'm really glad the Avengers came together. That we have Allie."

"As am I," Thor agreed, letting the warm water run over the brushes. "She has a great capacity to love, and with our scarce childhoods, we need that innocence in our lives, to remind us of what we fight for, what we live for."

"Yeah."

The two men finished cleaning the kitchen, and Clint started on grilled cheese sandwiches for Allie and Natasha. He finished just in time for his two favorite girls in the whole world to come down. Allie was dressed in a clean pair of shorts and a T-shirt, and took to her grilled cheese ravenously.

"What do we say?" Natasha reminded the girl.

"Thank you daddy," Allie said, giving Clint a huge, cheesy (literally) smile.

No one was surprised, later on, to see all ten paintings carefully framed and hung up in various spots in the Tower. And all visitors to Pepper's office wondered why a painting of an orange-haired blob and a brown-haired blob was in the place of honor even above what looked like an original Monet. "Modern art," another CEO concluded sagely. "The Maria Stark Foundation funds all kinds of up-and-coming artists."

 **A/N 2: Some Hulk and puppy fluff next chapter :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: A little angst to start off the chapter, some separation anxiety... some Malibu beach time!**

The Tuesday after, it was mommy-and-daughter day. Everyone else was working or out on the town, and Natasha was relishing her time with her daughter, without the handfuls of uncles. They'd just finished painting their nails (dark red for Natasha and light purple for Allie), after a breakfast of pancakes and a berry smoothie, and they were hanging out in the living room, playing Legos.

"Mommy?"

Natasha carefully snapped a green brick into place. "Yes baby?"

"You're weally pretty mommy." Allie wrapped her arms around Natasha's midsection in a hug and nestled into her shoulder.

Natasha smiled and placed a gentle hand on Allie's hair. "Thank you."

"Can you teach me to dance?" Allie asked, looking up at Natasha.

"What kind of dancing do you want to learn?"

"Uh...I want to dance like you taught Steeb and Thor and daddy and Bwuce."

Natasha had taken it upon herself to teach Steve to swing dance (finally), and by extension had taught the rest of the Avengers. Except Tony and Pepper, who knew how to swing dance already, and put on a better show than most _Dancing with the Stars_.

"All right." She stood up and led Allie to a clear space with no Legos. "First, you step like this and then..."

She taught her the basic swing step and then they had lunch: grilled chicken breasts and salad.

After that, it was time for a nap. Natasha tucked Allie into her bed and lay down with her to read a story. "What story?"

"The Wussian Bears."

Natasha read her the story of the little bears in Russian, and did the different voices for each little bear. She watched in amusement as Allie went from wide-awake to drowsy blinking, each blink longer than the last.

"Mommy?"

"Yeah?" Natasha murmured.

"Can I has a baby sister?" she asked in a sleepy whisper.

Natasha froze. "What?" she asked, feeling panicked.

"Yeah," Allie continued, nestling further into her mother's side and tangling her fingers into Natasha's loose T-shirt. She yawned. "Cuz, those girls from the park were sisters, and everybody in cartoons has sisters, and I want a sister. Or a brother, 'cept he has to be nice and not pull my hair like dat one boy on dat one show. Can you have one, mommy? I help take cawe of it, kay?"

Natasha frowned. "I don't, I don't think that's a good idea, baby."

"Wh'no?" She was almost asleep, her little eyelids fluttering.

"Because... because we can't. It would be too dangerous. What if I had to go save the world and I had a baby?"

Allie let out a little 'hm'. "Not good. Nev'r mind, mommy. Can we have ice cweam for dinner?"

"Sure baby, why not?"

"Hm." She turned and nestled her face into Natasha's shoulder, asleep a second later.

Natasha stared down at her chubby little cheeks, and sighed, feeling bad for giving her a non-answer. But how was she supposed to explain to Allie that she _couldn't_ have babies. The Red Room had ripped it away from her when she was barely more than a child herself, and Allie had been more than she'd ever thought possible. She pressed a kiss to Allie's forehead. "I love you, _malyshka_ ," she whispered, tugging Allie closer.

Allie sighed in her sleep.

Natasha closed her eyes, just to relax, and fell asleep a few moments later.

Clint found them when he came back from SHIELD, and a soft 'snap' of a camera shutter was what woke Natasha up.

She blinked at him drowsily. "Hey."

"Hey." He knelt next to the low bed and pressed a kiss to her lips. "Didn't mean to wake you." He reached over to smooth a hand over Allie's hair. "How was the little punkin?"

Natasha slid out of bed and tugged him out of the room. "Great, as usual."

"Then why do you have that little wrinkle, right, there?" He poked at it gently, on her forehead.

She sighed, and let her forehead fall into his shoulder. He put his arms around her waist and rubbed her back. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"She asked if she could have a baby sister," Natasha mumbled into the soft fabric of his Henley.

Clint stiffened slightly, and his grip on her tightened fractionally. "What did you tell her?" he asked, his tone even.

"That it wouldn't be a good idea in case we had to save the world again."

"Well you're not wrong," Clint mused. He pressed a kiss to her hair. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Natasha said. "She agreed with me, anyways. Maybe when she's older, I'll tell her."

"Yeah." Clint held her close.

"Daddy?" A soft, drowsy voice made them both look up. Allie was standing in the doorway, rubbing her eyes with a tiny fist. "You home?"

"Hey, there's my girl," he said, letting go of Natasha and kneeling down to scoop Allie into a hug. "You awake, there, sweetheart?"

She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed. "Nope."

"What if I told you there was grapes, and cheese sticks?"

She perked up. "Snacks?"

"Snacks," Clint confirmed, standing up with her in his arms. "C'mon, I bet you're hungry. That was a good nap, huh?"

"Yeah."

Natasha watched her husband and child walk down the hall to the elevator and grinned. Yeah. No matter what was in her past, there was nothing that could beat what she had right now.

A~A~A~A

"But _why_ do you hab to go?" Allie asked, looking up at Clint, Natasha, and Coulson with devastating puppy eyes.

"It's our job, baby, we _have_ to." Clint knelt and gave her a final hug. "And in the meantime you be good for the team, okay?"

She pouted. "Kay. I wuv you."

"I love you too." He kissed her forehead and handed her to Natasha.

"We'll see you soon, okay, baby? I love you."

"Love you mommy." Allie then hugged Coulson. "Be safe," she admonished. "No hurt. No stwess."

Coulson smiled. "I'll try."

Allie watched them leave, and sought comfort in the form of Thor.

He played with her while they watched Mulan, and then he gave her a hug and picked up Mjolnir. "I will see you soon, little one."

"Where are you goin?"

"To visit Jane in New Mexico. I will be back on Tuesday."

"Give Jane and Dawcy hugs."

"I will."

She watched him leave, and climbed into the beanbag. "JARBIS?"

"Yes little miss?"

"Where's everybody?"

"Captain Rogers is in his room, packing, and Dr. Banner and Sir are in the labs."

Allie's eyes began to water. "Where's Steeb goin?"

"He's going on a road trip, little miss. I believe your father told you yesterday that Captain Rogers was leaving."

Allie frowned. "I 'member," she said, sniffing. "He's gonna say bye, right, JARBIS?"

"Yes miss, of course - he's in the elevator now."

Steve walked into the living room and was met by a tearful Allie. "Hey, hey, what's this?" he asked, picking her up. He cupped her cheek with a gentle hand. "What's wrong, doll?"

She buried her face in the crook of his shoulder. "You goin' way and mommy daddy Cou-son gone, and Thor's gone, and I be alone for _dayyys_ cuz Bwuce and Tony and Pepper always busy." She finished her speech with a sniff and a truly tremendous pout.

Steve called on all his Captain America skills to refrain from smiling at her expression, and gave her a hug instead. "Listen, sweetheart, you're not going to be alone at all." He pulled back to look at her. "You think that Bruce and Tony and Pepper would let you be alone?"

She pouted.

"Didn't you spend time with Bruce in the lab just yesterday?" Steve asked.

She sighed. "Yes."

"And Tony let you play with his bots the other day, remember?"

"Yeah."

"And Pepper let you nap in her office, right?"

She folded her arms, still pouting. "Yes."

"Then what are you worried about?" he asked.

She hugged him. "I want mommy and daddy."

Oh. It wasn't about them, after all. "They'll be back before you know it," Steve promised. "And if you ask Tony, maybe you can call them tonight before bed. How does that sound?"

"Yeah," she said, voice muffled into his leather jacket.

"Kay." He kissed her head and got in the elevator. "Labs please."

The elevator deposited them in the labs, and Steve caught Tony and Bruce's eyes and waved them over. "Okay, doll, I've gotta go," he said, giving Allie a kiss on the forehead. "I'll send you postcards, okay?"

"Kay. Be safe, Steeb. Bwing me a pwesent?"

He laughed. "Sure." He handed her to Bruce.

Tony clapped him on the shoulder. "Gonna take your bike?"

"Yeah."

"You sure you don't want to take my jet?" Tony asked. "You could travel in style."

Steve shook his head. "I think, I've gotta do this the old-fashioned way."

"All right. If you break down somewhere, don't forget you have a cellphone. And keep it on, for crying out loud, in case Allie wants to talk to you. And don't forget that it's a camera. I want at least five cheesy selfies with famous statues, mister."

Steve laughed. "I'll try my best." Quietly, he told Tony about calling the spies before bedtime, and Tony nodded.

"We'll be fine," Tony said. "Now shoo. It's time for some preschool science." He ushered him out of the labs.

Allie didn't even notice 'Steeb' leaving, she was so involved in a game of catch with Dummy and You.

The day in the labs was very educational. Allie and Tony did some basic upgrades to her robo-dog, and gave it the ability to wag its tail. Then Bruce read a story with her; they were slowly working their way through Stuart Little. Then all three of them had Chinese takeout for lunch.

After that, Tony took Allie to a children's museum, and had dinner at one of Tony's favorite Italian places. Allie fell asleep on the way home, and very grudgingly woke up when Tony prodded her. They watched Finding Nemo, and Allie had a bath. As soon as she was out, she gave Tony an expectant look.

"What?" he asked.

"Call daddy," she said.

"Oh yeah. JARVIS?"

"Connecting to SHIELD," JARVIS announced.

There was a ringing, and then someone picked up. "Coulson."

"Hi Cou-son," Allie sang out. "Can I talk to daddy? Or mommy?"

There was an audible smile in Coulson's voice. "Sure. Hold on a second." There was a shuffling, and then,

"Hi baby."

"Mommy!" Allie squealed. She looked at Tony plaintively. "Can I has a phone?"

"Oh. Yeah." He connected a headset and fit it over her ear.

She curled into the couch and started to chat with her mom, and later Clint. "Yeah. And then we had pasketti. Uh-huh. I had a meatball. And dere was dis _huge_ dinosaur, and Tony said he was goin' to get one for de common room, and-" She looked at Tony. "Mommy said no. I _told_ you so, Tony."

"Yeah, yeah," Tony said, waving her concern away.

Allie chatted away for another ten minutes, and then reluctantly bid her parents good night.

Bruce fed her a final snack, and tucked her in. "Good night, sleep tight, Allie."

"Ni-night, Bwuce," she murmured. She snuggled into her pillows, turned into an orange-spotted kitten, and snuggled into the pillows some more.

Bruce pet a soft ear, and left the room, turning out the lights.

A~A~A~A

Two hours later, Tony woke up to a soft 'meow.' He opened his eyes grumpily - he'd _just_ gone to sleep - and found Allie as a kitten, sitting on his stomach. "Hey," he said softly, blinking. "What's up?"

She curled up onto his chest, her little paws on his arc reactor. "Mreow," she said sadly.

He smoothed her little furry head. "Okay," he said, closing his eyes. "Don't get smooshed." And he went back to sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, Allie, in her human form, was curled into Pepper's side, the woman's arm encircling the little girl protectively. Both of them were sound asleep. Tony smiled softly. "JARVIS, picture," he whispered.

He watched his wife sleep for a while, and marveled at the fact that he was a happily married man. Actually, happily, married. Yeah, he was a jerk sometimes, and sometimes he really, really, wanted to get drunk, and he had panic attacks and flashbacks, but everybody in this tower did.

Pepper shifted slightly and stretched, opening her eyes slowly. She smiled when she saw Tony gazing at her. "Like the view?" she asked lazily.

"Love it," he said gently. He reached out to trace the curve of her jaw. "You're so beautiful."

She covered his hand with hers, and kissed his fingers. "When did Allie get here?"

"I don't know. Midnight, ish." He reached out to smooth Allie's wildly tangled hair. "I think she had a nightmare or something."

"Poor baby," Pepper said, hugging her closer. "She's really attached to Clint and Natasha."

"She's really worried," Tony corrected. "Yesterday she asked me if I could make Iron Man suits for both of them so that they would be safe." He sighed and scrubbed at his face with one hand. "I don't know how we're going to keep her busy for the next week. There's only so many four-year-old science approved activities we can do."

Pepper glanced at the rotten weather outside, and tilted her head. "What if we went to Malibu?" she asked. "You have all your lab facilities over there, and I can easily do a week's worth of work in the house. And Allie would love the beach."

Tony smiled. "That's a brilliant idea, Pep."

"Yes I know." She gave him a smirk.

Allie woke up, then, stretching and rubbing her eyes with her fist. She shuffled around, and buried her head in Pepper's shoulders. "Is it breakfast?" she murmured.

"Good morning, sweetie," Pepper said, rubbing her back gently. "You awake yet?"

"No," Allie said grumpily.

Tony chuckled. "What if there were waffles?"

Allie turned to look at him, then shook her head. "No." She went back to cuddling.

Pepper checked the time. "Oh, but I gotta go baby." She carefully moved the sleepy girl over to the other side of the bed. "You cuddle with Uncle Tony till you're ready to get up."

"I'm not a pillow," Tony grumbled, wrapping an arm around Allie in spite of his words.

"I have photographic evidence that says otherwise," Pepper said in a sing-song voice.

He gasped dramatically. "Who took pictures?"

"Who didn't, is the question," Pepper corrected, gathering her clothes.

Allie giggled as they continued their banter, definitely awake, but happier.

Pepper kissed Tony goodbye and waved to Allie. "See you later, alligators," Pepper said.

Allie sat up interestedly. "Tony can I be an alligator?" she asked.

"Uh, if we find you some pictures maybe." He handed her a tiny green sock. "Did you take your socks off?"

"I dunno?"

"Okay." He threw on a sweatshirt and a pair of slippers, and picked her up. "Waffles!" he announced, carrying her out the door as she giggled.

He, okay, Bruce, but he helped, made waffles with blueberry syrup, and they dug in. Allie succeeded in staying relatively clean, and after breakfast got dressed in a blue and grey sweater-tunic and blue leggings. After some deliberation, she added a bright green beanie, and slipped on a pair of butterfly wings that came with her dress up collection. "Dere." She followed Tony down to the lab and climbed onto one of the stools. "Tony?"

"Yes dear," he replied, smiling at the green beanie.

"What we gonna do today?"

"Hmmm." Tony scratched his chin and cast his eyes up to the ceiling dramatically. "What _are_ we going to do today?" He held up a finger. "What if..." He raised an eyebrow at Allie mysteriously. "Ready for this?"

She nodded eagerly.

"What if we went to California?"

She stared at him. "Why?"

"Why not?" he replied, pulling up a picture of his house in Malibu, and the private beach. "That's my house. What do you think?"

"Is too big," she said frankly.

Tony laughed. "Yeah, it probably is. But do you think it's big enough for you, me, Pepper, and Bruce?"

She nodded. "And JARBIS?"

"Yep. JARVIS will be there. And so will the robots."

You chirped happily and did a victory dance.

Allie nodded. "Let's go to de beach."

The rest of that day they packed most of Allie's things (" _how_ did we accumulate this much _stuff_ in like three months?"), and that evening the four of them flew down to Malibu. Allie was excited for the first hour of the plane ride, pushing all the buttons in the jet, and spontaneously turning into a puppy, kitten, bird, dragon, and kitten, in that order, before she passed out from sheer exuberance.

When she woke up the next morning, she was in a strange room, and for a second she was scared. Then,

"Good morning, little miss."

"JARBIS!" Allie popped out of bed. "We here?"

"We are in the Malibu house," JARVIS confirmed.

"Cool!" Allie pressed her nose to the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring at the ocean. "Wowwwwww."

"Pretty, isn't it?" Pepper asked, coming into Allies' room.

"Is so amazingful," Allie breathed. "Can we go in it, Peps?"

"After you have breakfast," Pepper promised.

"Okay!" She ran to get her swim clothes and a pair of shorts out of the closet. "Help?" she asked, holding up the straps of the swimsuit.

Pepper helped her get dressed, and they went to breakfast: eggs and toast.

Then they gathered up supplies, towels, a giant umbrella, and copious amounts of sunscreen, and headed down to the water. Pepper slathered both Tony and Allie in sunscreen, opened a lounge chair under the umbrella and pulled out her tablet. Allie went to play with the Science Bros, and they taught her how to build a perfect sandcastle. Of course being geniuses, they had to go above and beyond and build a castle and a courtyard big enough for Allie to sit in, a two-foot-deep moat that was a perfect circle, and a drawbridge with supplies from Pepper's tote.

Allie was thrilled with her castle, and declared herself Princess Allie. Tony was Knight Tony, Bruce was King Bwuce, and Pepper was the Queen. "Shouldn't I be the king if Pepper's the queen?" Tony asked the little girl.

Allie contemplated this for a moment and then shook her head. "Nope," she said firmly. "Knights has armor." She tapped his arc reactor gently. "Yous gots armor. And Bwuce is more respons'ble. So he's de king, and Pepper's amazingful so she's de queen."

Tony smiled gently. "Can't argue with that, kiddo." He scooped her out of the castle. "Now, little miss, who wants to play in the water?"

They played till lunchtime, had sandwiches and watermelon, and then Allie passed out under the umbrella on a beach towel, smiling in her sleep. Tony took a nap, too, much to Pepper's surprise, and Bruce took the peaceful time to meditate.

Allie woke up two hours later, raring to go, and she and Bruce spent a while drawing in the sand and making up stories. They even managed to sneak some math in there as they added up piles of seashells. Allie picked a shell for each one of the Avengers family, including JARVIS. Tony teased his AI that he'd have to give him his own room just to hold his material possessions.

They all slept very well that night.

The next day, Pepper took Allie sightseeing. They went to a chocolate factory, and Allie came away with a grab bag of goodies which she solemnly promised to eat only in human form, not puppy. Then they went shopping, Allie perfectly content to be Pepper's dress-up doll. Later that evening, Happy staggered dramatically under the weight of bags and boxes as he carried everything into the house.

Allie had some chow mein and a piece of teriyaki chicken before going to bed, and a content Pepper curled up next to Tony on the couch, putting her feet in his lap. He started to massage them obligingly. "Get everything you wanted?" he asked.

"Yep."

"Good." He pressed into the arch of her foot with his thumb, and smirked when she giggled.

"I got her the cutest little dresses," Pepper said, leaning her head back on the arm of the couch. "She makes everything look cute, actually."

Tony remembered one day she'd only wanted to wear one of Clint's shirts and nothing else, and grinned. "Even Clint's old SHIELD shirt?"

Pepper laughed. The little girl had been drowning in old, faded, material, but so happy with her new portable tent space that she was twice as adorable. "Yes." She fell silent again quickly.

"What's wrong, Pep?" Tony asked, after a minute.

"There were lots of paparazzi today," Pepper said. "Happy couldn't shield us from all of it."

Tony's hands stilled for a moment. "And Allie?"

"Hid behind me, mostly, but they wanted to know who she was. I told them she was a dear friend's, that we were having a girl's day while her parents were on business."

Tony relaxed slightly. "Good. It's true, anyway. And you've got tons of friends, nobody's going to connect the dots. Just in case... JARVIS, media watch for Allie?"

"Yes sir."

They went to bed soon after.

A~A~A~A

They stayed in Malibu for another week, and then returned to the tower. Thor was back, along with Jane and Darcy, and there was a pile of postcards waiting from Steve, who was now somewhere in Florida. "Probably at Disney World without us, the brat," Tony sniffed.

"We go to Disney World?" Allie asked, her eyes widening with excitement.

"Maybe after your parents come back," Tony said, realizing after a second he could not deprive Clint or Natasha of taking Allie to Disney World, or else he'd wake up stuck full of knives and arrows.

"Okay." She summoned her robo-dog with a wave, turned into a small Doberman puppy, and started to wrestle on the floor. Disney World was forgotten, for now. The kid never forgot anything, seems like, and the other day Bruce had been forced into watching Mulan for the umpteenth time because he'd _promised_ that they would watch it later.

A few days later Steve returned, having satisfied his wanderlust for now. He brought back with him an alligator plushie for Allie.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Finally some action/adventure and Hulk time!**

"Hey, there's my girl!"

Allie looked up at Clint cheerfully. "Daddy you back!" She put down her tablet.

"Yes I am," he said, grinning. He picked her up and put her on his hip. "Wanna go to the park, sweet pea?"

She frowned at him. "What 'bout mommy?"

"Mommy's still at work."

Her frown increased. "Cou-son?"

"Uh, also at work."

"Steeb?"

"He's busy."

Allie frowned some more, and wriggled impatiently in his grasp. "Shoes, daddy," she said, accidentally kicking him in the thigh. "Can't go out wifout shoes."

"Oh yeah." He put her down. "Where's your shoes?"

"My room," she replied. "Can I has de green ones?"

"Sure, babycakes. I'll be right back." He left the room, and got in the elevator.

Allie waited a couple seconds, then ran behind the couch. "JARBIS?" she whispered.

"Yes little miss?" JARVIS asked.

"Dat's not daddy," she whispered. "Is someone else."

JARVIS, if he had a face, would have frowned. "What do you mean?" he asked, quietly locking down the floor that Clint was on.

"Dat's not daddy," Allie repeated stubbornly. "He not feel safe. Feels, itchy."

"Itchy?"

"Like, skin itchy," she replied. "He not daddy. Daddy know I not have gween shoes. He _knows_ cuz I told him I no like gween shoes. And daddy not call me cake. Dat name's silly."

JARVIS, if he had a body, would have turned white as a sheet and possibly fainted. "I'm alerting the Avengers," he told her quietly, calmly. "I'm sending Dr. Banner to your location and locking down the floor with the intruder. Stay there, Allie." As he scanned the floor, he noticed "Clint's" energy signature change - the same way Allie's changed when she shape-shifted. He catalogued the change and made sure the air vents were firmly closed.

"What 'bout Jane and Dawcy?" Allie whispered, crouching behind the couch.

"They are safe in the lab."

The elevator doors slid open and Bruce skidded out, his eyes searching frantically. "Allie?"

"Bwuce?" She approached him cautiously, and then launched herself into his arms, shaking with relief and suppressed sobs. "You're you, Bwuce, you safe."

"I'm safe," he promised. "You were so brave, Allie, I'm very proud of you for staying calm." He moved the far end of the living room, his back against the wall, and concentrated on taking deep breaths. "ETA for the rest of the team?" he asked.

"Twenty minutes for Agents Barton, Romanoff, and Coulson, ten minutes for Sir, Thor, and Captain Rogers," JARVIS reported.

"Okay," Bruce said, taking a deep breath. "Ten minutes. We can stay calm for ten minutes."

Allie eyed him curiously. "You gonna be Hulk, Bwuce?"

"I hope not," the scientist replied.

"Why not?"

"Because then you might get hurt, baby."

She hugged him. "You not hurt me, Bwuce. I promise."

"All right." He rubbed her back, and tried to change the topic. "Hey, in twenty minutes your parents will be back."

Allie's face lit up. "Dey home for reals?"

"For reals," Bruce said.

"Good. I miss dem so much. I show mommy my shells from de beach, and my new clothes, and daddy my drawings of de beach, and, and mommy too, and give Cou-son his rock, and-"

" _I_ am your daddy," a voice announced, and a figure slid out from the air vent five feet away, transforming into a well-built man in his early thirties.

Allie let out a shriek of fear, and Bruce stiffened up, flashes of green appearing in his peripherals. _Calm_ , he told himself. "Who are you?" he demanded, shifting Allie to a safer hold.

"I am Ryan McCallen," the man said. "I've come for my daughter." His green eyes were resolute.

"She's not yours," Bruce said. "Legally she is Allie Barton. You can't touch her. And if you don't surrender peacefully now, you'll be in trouble."

McCallen's chin lifted. "I'm a shapeshifter. You can't touch me." He took a step closer and locked gazes with Allie. "Is that your name?" he asked. "Allie?"

She gave a hesitant nod.

"That's a beautiful name," McCallen said. "Perfect for my beautiful little daughter."

"No," Allie said stubbornly. "My daddy is Cwint. He's a superhewo. You stwanger. Go way."

"You don't mean that," McCallen said. "They've trained you to say that, honey. If you come with me, I can show you how to turn into all kinds of fun stuff. Wouldn't that be cool?"

"No," Allie said.

"And then we can rescue your mother from prison," McCallen continued, not pausing to let the little girl answer, "and we can be a happy family again. What do you think?"

Allie's eyes filled with tears and she shook her head. "No!" she shrieked. "No old mommy! Bad mommy!" She grabbed Bruce in a tight hold and wailed, "Make him go 'way Bwuce."

"You heard her," Bruce said firmly. "Leave." He was trembling from the strain of controlling the Other Guy. It had been six months without an incident (albeit the incident being saving the planet from the Chitauri), and he didn't want to break that streak.

"Not without her."

Bruce gritted his teeth. "Do you not realize that your wife is in prison for a reason?" he asked. "She _neglected_ Allie, didn't love her, didn't even name her. She's not going back to that woman, ever."

"Liar!" McCallen yelled, and charged.

Bruce's vision went green.

HULK SMASH BAD MAN. He paused long enough to deposit Allie on top of a secured bookshelf, and grabbed at McCallen with big green hands, intent on squeezing the breath out of him.

McCallen turned into a long, slimy _thing_ , and slipped out of his hands, rebounding into a wild boar or something as soon as he hit the floor.

HULK SAVE BABY. That was the big guy's only thought as he grappled with McCallen, throwing him into the other side of the room. He was not expecting McCallen to turn into a hawk and swoop over to the bookshelf, picking up a tiny puppy Allie with his talons, claws digging into her clothes.

She started whining and thrashing desperately.

Hulk snatched her from the hawk, glad that the ceilings on this floor were low enough, and cupped the puppy in one large hand. He simply cupped his hands together and sat down. Nothing in the world could break his hands apart.

For the next five minutes, McCallen shapeshifting himself into a frenzy, trying and failing to pry apart the Hulk's hands to grab Allie. Then he suddenly went limp as a round shield, a repulsor blast, and a bolt of lightning hit him at the same time. He dropped to the ground.

Thor placed his hammer on the man's chest, and the superheroes quickly secured the room. "Where is Allie?" Thor demanded.

TEAM GOOD. BABY SAFE. Hulk carefully lifted his huge green hand, revealing a curled up, whimpering puppy in his palm. "BABY SAFE," he rumbled, letting Cap take the puppy. His eyes rolled backwards, and he shrunk down into Bruce.

A hastily arranged throw blanket preserved his modesty, and while McCallen was dragged away by an irate Thor, Steve and Stark focused on the shivering puppy. "It's okay," Steve soothed, cradling the puppy close. "It's okay. It's safe now, you're safe. We're all okay. The bad man's all gone."

Allie transformed from puppy to girl, and burst into tears. "I want my mommy," she sobbed. "I wan' m'daddyyyy..."

"I know baby, I know," Steve said.

"They'll be here any second," Tony promised. "Everything's going to be okay, sweetheart."

She let out another sob.

Tony gave her a little pat on the back and went to help Bruce to his bedroom to take a nap. _Emotion_ was _not_ his forte.

Steve rocked the little girl in his arms, his heart breaking for her. "It's okay, sweetheart."

The elevator doors opened and the spysassins rushed in. "Allie!" Natasha vaulted over the coffee table and scooped her daughter up in her arms, honest-to-goodness tears in the corners of her eyes. "Are you all right, sweetheart?" She leaned back to inspect her, saw no injuries, and pulled her close again. "Shh, baby, shhh."

Clint went over to Steve, his posture stiff with tension. "What. Happened."

"JARVIS said a shapeshifter with your form got into the tower, fingerprints and everything, and tried to take Allie to the park. She knew it wasn't him and sent him to get her shoes. She told JARVIS to assemble the Avengers and Bruce came to protect her. He hulked out when the stranger tried to get to Allie, and protected her. We subdued him and..." Steve shrugged and waved a helpless hand at the sniffling girl.

Clint's grip on his bow tightened. "Where is he?" he growled.

Steve grabbed his shoulder lightly. "Clint, no. Let us take care of him. You take care of your kid. Family first."

Clint glanced at Allie, and dropped his bow on the table. "All right. Thanks, Cap." He went over to his wife and daughter, and Allie practically jumped into his arms. "Hey, punkin, shhh, it's okay. We're here now." Two weeks was too long for a mission, he decided.

Allie pressed her face into his shoulder. "No more going 'way daddy," she sniffled. "No more leaving me 'lone."

"No more," Clint promised. "We're never going to go away for that long ever again, I promise."

She let out another little whimper. "Why bad guy daddy wan' me?"

Clint held her tighter, pressing a kiss to her hair. "I don't know, baby. We'll find out, and it'll never happen again." He traded a glance with Natasha.

She nodded, took a deep breath, and walked out, Cap on her heels. She made a beeline for a conference room, and put up the security footage. She was silent until McCallen revealed who he was, and then she growled, a dark, primal sound of a mother sensing danger to her child. Once the footage was done, she turned to Cap. "I want to interrogate him."

Steve frowned. "You won't kill him."

"Not much."

Steve took a step back. "Be my guest."

The grin she gave him was pure Black Widow, and she stalked silently out the door.

Steve turned on the feed to the holding cell, and didn't say anything when Coulson and Stark entered the room. "Think we should wake Bruce up for this?' Tony asked, grinning. "Make some popcorn, maybe?"

"I could go for some popcorn," Coulson agreed.

On the video, Natasha entered the room, and the men fell silent.

As soon as McCallen saw the Black Widow, he turned white, then a sickly pale.

She gave him a cool, feral grin. "Why did you target the child?" she asked, in a tone of voice that said if he gave her the wrong answer she'd rip his throat out.

He licked his lips nervously and said, "She's my kid. I've got a right-"

"You have no rights in this room," she retorted sharply.

He turned another shade of pale, and started to babble. "I wasn't going to hurt her, I swear, she's my baby girl, I've been away but I promise I'm gonna take care of her, I just had to work and get enough money to move, and I knew she had my genes, she needs to be trained, we were gonna do stuff together, I didn't mean any harm, honest, and she's not safe here with all the attacks all the time, I was gonna take her and her mom down to my mom's place in Augusta, there's a good school there, and-"

"How did you find her?" Natasha interrupted.

"I went to find my wife and kid but the house was empty and the neighbor told me what had happened, and i saw Allie in a photograph in a magazine and I knew it was her, so I took a cab and- can I see her? Haven't seen her since she was a baby, I want to see her."

"What you want does not matter," Natasha informed him. "You abandoned your child to an uncaring, apathetic woman who is now in jail for child neglect. Allie has been adopted by a couple and she is _happy_. You will be charged with trespassing, attempted abduction of a minor, assault of an Avenger, and child abandonment. And worst of all, _you scared her._ "

He stared at her, slack-jawed.

She turned away, hesitated, turned back, punched him square in the jaw and watched in satisfaction as he fell over, blood gushing from his nose. She left him there, and exited the room.

"Working, huh," Tony said, accessing the man's financial records. He snorted. "He hasn't had an honest job in the last decade. I'm going to guess his tidy fifty thousand has very shady origins."

Steve looked at Coulson. "Is SHIELD gonna take this guy?"

"Yes. Now that I think about it, he might be the missing piece in several super-powered criminal activities." Coulson gave them both a nod and left.

SHIELD came to take McCallen into custody, and everyone was able to relax. Well, except Tony and JARVIS, and Bruce once he woke up. They were reinforcing the Tower's security measures to spot shapeshifters and be able to detain them. "Just closing the vents didn't stop him," Tony mused. "I wonder how small Allie can go, too."

"She's got a lot of potential," Bruce said, analyzing the cell structure of both McCallen and Allie.

On the Barton-Romanoff floor, Clint and Natasha had managed to calm Allie down, and distracted her by asking all about her two weeks with her uncles. She told them all about the beach, and the games, and the shopping, and gave them their pretty shells. They gifted her with a pretty scarf woven with blue and orange.

Allie refused to let her parents get out of her sight for the rest of the day, and when it was time for bed, she got hysterical at the thought of her parents leaving her alone in her room.

She slept that night sandwiched securely in between her parents, Clint holding her to his chest. Neither he or Natasha slept much that night, silently keeping watch over their baby.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hello again! Sorry for the long wait, but I was taking care of my mom and had to put all my stories on hold. Here's a bit of fluff for you all :) Also, I seem to run out of plot... suggestions?**

The next few days were difficult. Allie flatly refused to be in a room without one or both of her parents, and she jumped or shapeshifted anytime anything startled her. She spent half an hour as a trembling, shivering canary when Thor spoke too loudly. He felt horrible about it, and removed himself to the gym for the rest of the day.

At night, the only way she would get to sleep was if one parent curled up with her in their room, and the other parent promised to stay awake all night to keep watch. Steve also promised that he would stand watch in the hallway, and when Allie woke up crying from a nightmare, Steve poked his head in the door, shield in hand. "Everything okay?" he asked softly.

"Nightmare," Clint said tiredly, rubbing his eyes.

"Anything I can do to help?"

"You know any other songs that aren't from the kid songs CD's 1-10?" Clint asked wryly.

"No, sorry." Steve watched Natasha soothe Allie, rocking her from side to side. "I wish I could help..."

"Thanks, Cap. You don't have to keep watch, you know."

Steve shrugged. "I'm okay." And he returned to his post in the hall.

Clint went back to his two girls and scooped up a crying Allie. "Shh, come on baby girl, everything's okay."

Allie finally drifted off, exhausted from crying. Her parents followed soon after, both of them exhausted.

A~A~A~A

The next day, Allie woke up, tired, cranky, and hungry. She didn't wake Clint or Natasha, but instead turned into a kitten and padded silently down the halls to the common room. Only Thor was there, eating Pop-Tarts fresh from the toaster without letting them cool. He smiled when he saw the kitten in the doorway. "Good morning, little one," he said softly. "Hungry?"

Allie bounded from the doorway to the nearest chair, and transformed into a girl. "G'morning, yes, pwease," she mumbled, laying her head onto the table.

He smiled and placed a Pop-tart on a plate to cool. "Would you like some juice?"

"Mmgh."

He poured some juice in a cup printed with swinging monkeys, and placed it on the table next to the Pop-tart. After some deliberation, he grabbed a banana and placed it in front of her as well. "A balanced meal," he said.

She ate it, her eyes drooping with exhaustion, and fell asleep halfway through her banana.

Thor picked her up and laid her on the couch to finish sleeping.

She only woke up because Tony and Bruce came into the common room yelling at each other about batteries. She turned into a snake and slithered under the couch to sit on the heater vent. She stayed there, content to soak up the warmth, until the Science Bros stopped their argument and focused on eating. Then she slithered out again, and, giggling inwardly, slithered silently up the table and coiled around Tony's cup of coffee.

He noticed the snake, and shrieked like a flighty teenage girl before his pre-caffeinated brain realized what was going on. "Allie!" he gasped, clutching at his heart dramatically. "You scared me half to death!"

Bruce, snickering wildly, reached over to lift Allie off the table. "That was hilarious," he chuckled, wiping at his eyes. "That was great. JARVIS, send that to Pepper."

"No way!" Tony said indignantly.

Allie turned from snake to girl, and giggled into Bruce's shoulder. "Was that a good trick?" she asked, pleased with herself.

"A very good trick," Bruce said, still grinning.

"I scawe you too much?" Allie asked Tony, looking concerned when he didn't immediately comment.

"No, sweetheart, that was pretty funny," Tony admitted, giving her a grin. "Aw why not, J, send it to Pepper."

JARVIS acknowledged serenely. "Of course sir."

Allie picked the blueberries out of Bruce's oatmeal when the scientist wasn't looking, and when they left, she built herself a fort in the corner of the common room, and played knights and dragons. She was, of course, both the knight and the dragon, switching between forms fluidly and entertaining JARVIS and Thor immensely.

Allie was napping in her fort a couple hours later, when Coulson walked in the room. He hung up on a very spirited phone conversation, and sighed. "I hate my job sometimes," he grumbled, and flopped onto the nearest couch with a groan.

Thor looked up from his thick Asgardian novel. "What ails you, son of Coul?" he asked kindly. "Do I need to smite someone?"

Coulson laughed. "I'll let you know." He sighed again. "Mr. McCallen is being very insistent about his supposed parental rights. He refuses to tell SHIELD anything."

Thor's eyes darkened. "Have you allowed Clint or Natasha to interrogate him?"

"No." Coulson frowned. "That's not a good idea. That's a very bad idea. I allowed it the first few minutes because Allie was there, but this time around..." he shook his head. "No. They don't need that on their consciences."

Allie crawled out of her blanket fort. "Why's he being bad?" she asked solemnly.

The two men stared at her, startled. They'd forgotten she was in the room. "What are you playing?" Coulson asked, hoping they could distract her.

She ignored him. "Why's my old daddy bad?" she asked.

Coulson sighed. "We don't know," he said. He held out a hand, and let her crawl into his lap. "Sometimes, baby, when people have powers, they think that the rules no longer apply to them, that because they're strong, or smart, or shapeshifters, that they don't have to behave. But when they think that way, bad things happen."

"Yeah." She sighed. "Why'd he leave me and old-mommy, Cou-son?"

"I don't know, sweetheart."

She looked up at him. "I ask him?" she asked. "Talk to him for SHIELD?"

Coulson hugged her close. "No, baby girl, that's not a good idea." He kissed her hair. "You don't need to talk to him if you don't want to." He gave her an odd look. "Do you want to?"

She shook her head. "No. He sounds mean."

"All right. You don't have to worry about him ever again if you don't want to."

She nodded. "Kay." She jumped onto the floor and went over to Thor. "Hug?" she asked.

He hugged her obligingly, and she sank into his embrace.

Coulson grinned slightly. "What makes his hugs better than my hugs?" he asked, not offended, just curious.

Allie shrugged. "Tor-hugs are just better. I no know why." She leaned into Thor's chest. "Watch movie?"

"Sure. What movie?"

"Mawy Poppin."

When Clint and Natasha finally joined the land of the living, Allie was back in her blanket fort, playing the dragon. Thor was the princess, and Coulson was the knight. Clint emailed the video to Fury immediately.

Fury's response was automatically censored by the SHIELD servers, but essentially, it was "Stop corrupting my agents!"

After a few days, Allie completely forgot her biological parent, and returned to her cheerful self. McCallen was convicted for several felonies by the use of his powers, and sent to the Sandbox.

A~A~A~A


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: All righty. Some Pepper and Allie cuddles, and then... an adventure...**

Today there was a platypus on the sofa. Pepper came in, did a double-take, and then grinned. "Allie?" The platypus looked up and let out a chirp. "Why are you a platypus?"

Allie did the equivalent of a shrug, and rolled over in her nest of blankets to expose her soft belly.

Pepper gave her a belly rub and a kiss on the head, and continued on to the kitchen.

Allie shifted into a puppy wearing an adorable blue sweater, and trotted after her. The CEO made herself a chicken wrap and then flopped herself down on Pepper's feet, covering the delicate open-toe heels and warming the CEO's feet instantly.

Pepper relaxed, almost boneless, into her chair and sighed. "Thank you sweetheart," she murmured.

Allie wagged her tail. She sat there as a space heater for Pepper's toes until she finished eating and then followed Pepper into the elevator, wagging her tail.

"You coming down to the office with me, sweetie?" Pepper asked.

Allie yipped happily.

Pepper picked her up, not wanting her to run off and get lost on this less-secure part of the building. She let Allie down once she reached the office, and Allie immediately jumped on Pepper's lap once the CEO sat down. "You're very cuddly today," Pepper said. "You feel all right?"

Allie licked her hand in reply.

"Okay then." Pepper got to work, absently petting her.

During meetings or conference calls Allie would hide under the desk. As one call dragged on, and on, and on, Pepper subtly dropped a tablet and a pair of earbuds under her desk. A second later the blue glow of a movie lit up her feet. She grinned inwardly.

When the conference call was over, Tony came in. "Good afternoon, Miss Potts," he said breezily.

"Mr. Stark," she replied demurely, and they grinned at each other.

He leaned forward to kiss her, and was interrupted by a small pair of paws on his leg. "Eh, ahem, hey Allie." He picked her up. "What are you doing down here?"

She yipped cheerfully and bopped his jaw with her nose.

He smooched her head in reply.

"Allie was keeping me company," Pepper said, smiling. "And keeping my feet warm."

"Aw," Tony cooed, giving Allie another smooch on the head.

JARVIS spoke up. "Little miss, may I remind you that you still have to do twenty minutes of learning."

The puppy pouted and buried her head in Tony's jacket.

Tony smirked. "What if you came and helped me with the bots?" he asked. "Do you think playing mechanic would work?"

Allie peeked out from his jacket and nodded.

"All right." He set her down on the floor and they watched as she turned into a dragon. "Are you going to do the welding?" Tony asked, highly amused.

She let out a poof of smoke and rawred happily.

Tony suddenly looked contemplative. "You know, if you could actually breathe fire, you could do some spot-welding-"

"No Tony," Pepper said firmly.

"But Pep-"

"No." She looked at Allie. "Don't let him do it."

The little dragon nodded seriously.

"Fine." Tony held out an arm, and let Allie the dragon sit on his arm like a falcon would. "We'll see you later, Pepper."

"All right. Have fun Allie!"

They did some upgrades on the bots, and then Allie played checkers with Steve till it was time for dinner.

A~A~A~A

The next few weeks passed rather peacefully, and the weather was getting warmer every day. And then the Avengers were called out on a secret mission to Siberia. Nobody was very happy about it, especially Allie, but they couldn't exactly say no. So it was just her and Pepper and the bots rattling around in the living floors of the towers. Pepper let Allie come sleep with her in the penthouse, and the two of them would stay up and drink hot cocoa and watch "Audwey Hipbun" movies.

On the second day of the Avengers' absence, Pepper and Allie went down to Steve's apartment to look for some crayons that she'd left in his living room. Except he hadn't left them on the coffee table; thus the search.

Pepper's phone rang with a call she absolutely could not dismiss, so she stepped away to her office three floors up.

Allie continued searching for her crayons, with her Bucky Bear for company. She found Steve's art supplies in a closet, and instead of crayons, discovered some chalk pastels. She investigated their worth as a crayon-substitute ("too dusty", she decided), and put everything back. Her crayons must be elsewhere.

She left the closet, and then the lights went out. She froze. "JARBIS?" she asked uncertainly. "Light?"

The dim orange emergency lights came on, but JARVIS didn't reply. And then the orange lights turned off, leaving the hallway completely black.

"JARBIS?" Allie asked again, getting scared.

No answer.

"Pepper?" Allie called, heading towards the elevator. It was off. "JARBIS?"

Still no answer.

Allie shapeshifted into a small grey kitten, her night vision improving by two hundred percent. She padded silently back to the living room, where there was natural light - except it was seven in the evening and it was dark. She let out a hiss of distress and licked at her front paw anxiously to keep quiet.

Then she heard the footsteps. They were almost silent, like mommy's, but they were more shuffly. Those weren't footsteps of family.

She transformed into a snake, and slid under the nearest sofa to hide. This way she had heat vision.

A tall, muscled figure moved into the living room. He paused, looked around, and then walked all the way in. The way he moved looked dangerous, like when mommy and daddy were training.

Allie shivered nervously, watching the intruder go from desk to bookshelf to TV. Was he looking for something? Why'd he turn the lights off? He couldn't see, could he?

She slithered out of the room silently, and snuck halfway down the hallway before turning into her human form. She ran quietly for the elevator and pushed the button again frantically. "JARBIS," she whispered, "please, please, open."

But nothing happened.

Stairs, she suddenly remembered, there were stairs. She could take the stairs up to the penthouse, or, wait, down. Down to where there were people working, even on Sundays. She could find nice Mr. Happy from security, and he'd keep her safe till Pepper came to get her.

She turned to run to the stairs, and found herself face to face with the large shadowy stranger. She opened her mouth to scream in terror, but he caught her around the waist and clapped a hand over her mouth before she could make a sound. She whimpered against his gloved hand, and struggled. She hit his vulnerable parts with her knee, hoping he'd let go, but he just grunted and moved down the hallway.

Allie twisted and wriggled for all she was worth, but the intruder held fast. He went back to the living room, picked up the fallen stuffed toy on the floor, and handed it to her. She grabbed the Bucky Bear eagerly, and tried to break his one-handed grip on her arm.

"Stop," he commanded in a deep voice, shaking her slightly.

She froze in fear that he might hit her.

He picked her up again, and suddenly he was bundling her in one of Steve's sweatshirts. He dropped the hood over her head, and then suddenly they were moving. _Fast_.

Allie couldn't help whimpering in fear, and she clutched her Bucky Bear tightly. It felt like they were going down the stairs twenty at a time, and her stomach dropped into her feet.

Then the air from outside hit her bare toes, and she whimpered again. They were outside the Tower and JARVIS didn't know where she was... maybe now she'd better scream, with lots of people around? She opened her mouth to take a deep breath - and then there was a hand over her mouth again.

"Scream, and die," the man told her calmly.

She swallowed her scream, letting out a little sob instead, and he released her mouth. Then he was _running_ , and after ten minutes Allie started to get carsick. Not carsick, run-sick? What was it called?

Then finally they stopped, and the man swung her off his shoulder. He plopped her on a hard wooden chair, and said sternly, "Stay."

She huddled into the sweatshirt, and looked around. It was dark in the building, but she could make out a table, and a stove, and a bed. It was a little apartment, like the one Darcy's friend lived in. But there were no pictures or pretty things on the shelves. Not even a book. Was this where the stranger-person lived?

The stranger had started pacing around the tiny area, muttering in what Allie recognized as Russian. He looked tired and frustrated, and kept tugging at his long hair. He kept saying things about protocol and handlers. Maybe he was a bad spy and he needed his handler, like a Bad-Coulson. But if he was a spy... that meant he knew her mommy. Everybody knew mommy. Maybe he'd give her back so mommy wouldn't get mad at him.

Allie cleared her throat. "You a spy?" she asked.

He stopped and looked at her. "What?"

"You a spy?" she repeated.

"Yes," he said shortly.

She nodded. "You know my mommy? She's de Black Widow."

His shoulders stiffened and his vision went blank. "Natalia Alianovna Romanova," he said, like JARVIS reciting a list. "Sole surviving member of the Black Widow program. Agent for SHIELD. Member of the Avengers Initiative."

"Dat's her," Allie said, nodding. "If you don't take me back, mommy will find me, and daddy, and Steeb, and Tony, and Bwuce, and Coulson, and Tor, and then you be dead." She lifted her chin defiantly when he stared at her. "You has to give me back right now or else."

The strange man's mouth twisted up in a little grin. "I do, huh?" And his tone was a little less stiff.

"Yes." She nodded solemnly. "You has to take me back. Maybe, maybe you can work for SHIELD instead of bad-guys, and, and be a good-guy."

"I am not the bad guy," he replied. "I work for the freedom of the world."

"Who you work for?" she asked.

"HYDRA," he replied instantly.

Her eyes widened. "You work for _HYDRA_? But dat's _bad_. Dat's _very bad_. Dey killed Bucky! And a bunch of other people!" She hugged her stuffed animal tightly. "You a bad guy."

He glared at her. "Quiet. I'm trying to think." He returned to his pacing and muttering in Russian. And then he went to the window and stared out.

Allie glanced at the door. If she shapeshifted into a snake, she'd fit under the door jamb. Or- she glanced at the other window. It was open slightly. She could turn into a bird and fly away, right back to the Tower.

She shapeshifted into a bird just as the man turned back from the window. He let out a yell of surprise and Allie let out a cheep of dismay before making a break for the window.

He got there before her and slammed the window shut, almost catching her wingtips in the sash. He grabbed her out of the air and cupped his hands over her. "What the world?" he asked, staring at the frantically-fluttering bird in his hands. "You're a mutant."

She pecked at his fingers, and nipped his pinkie through the glove. She managed to get free, and turned back into herself. She glared at him. "You a stupid-head," she said spitefully, angry that her escape hadn't worked. "Hulk gonna smash you into bits."

He picked her up and set her in the chair again. "Don't move."

She pouted at him. "I don't wike you."

"I don't care," he retorted, glaring at her. "What's your name?"

"Allie Barton-Womanoff," she said. "My daddy's gonna put an awwow through your eyeballs." When he didn't respond to this impressive threat, she asked, "What's your name?"

"The Asset."

She shook her head. "Name, name."

"I don't have a name."

She frowned. "You mommy no like you either?"

"What?"

"My first mommy didn't wike me because I shapeshifts. Your mommy didn't like you either? Dat's why you not have a name?"

"No," he said. "I am The Asset."

"Dat's a stupid name. And it's got a bad word in it," was her sage reply. "Dat's a dollar in de jar. When you get captured mommy's gonna make you put a dollar in de jar. Maybe ten dollars, like Tony."

He rolled his eyes and went back to pacing.

She watched him pace for a while, and then asked, "Why were you at the Tower?"

"To steal back some information from Tony Stark." He held up a hard drive from his pocket.

Allie gasped. "You took a piece of JARBIS! Give it back!"

"No." He put it back in his pocket.

"But you made him have an owie!"

"Repairing the computer was not my mission," he said dismissively.

"What's your whole mission?" she asked, scowling at him. "Did you hurt JARBIS more?"

"No. My mission was also to look for information on this new Captain America."

"Steeb?" she asked. "Why?"

"To see what kind of enemy he is."

She scowled. "Steeb is awesome. Steeb's gonna kick you butt when he finds me."

"Yeah? You friends with him?"

She glared at him in reply.

He stood in front of her, tall and looming in the dark apartment. "Tell me about Captain America."

"He's from the forties," she replied. "He's de real Cap from the war. And the comics, but he doesn't like 'em cuz dey made Peggy Cawter look dumb and she's the smartest agent ever. Coulson said so."

"How has he adapted to this century? Tell me."

"He uses tablets," Allie replied, shrugging. "He likes de ones you can paint wif, with the little stick."

"Stylus," the man corrected.

"Stylus," she repeated.

"Tell me more."

She frowned. The last time she'd heard Steve talk about adapting to the twenty-first century, he and Tony had been talking about Steve's old friends from the war. "He misses everybody," she said sadly. "His ma and Peggy Cawter and Bucky and Dum Dum and Howid Stark, Tony's dad, and Jack Da-near and Fall-worth, and _especially_ Bucky." She lifted up the bear. "This is Bucky. Well, this is Bucky Bear. But he's based on de real Bucky, Barnes, from de war. He's a collec-ible. Coulson gave him to me. He's my _favorite_."

"Bucky?" the man echoed, giving her a strange look.

"Yeah. James Bucky Barnes. He was Steeb's bestest friend in de whole world. He helped Steeb get better when he was sick and he helped Steeb go to art school and he was a sniper in de army and when he got captured Steeb went to save him, and den dey were all together in a team, like de Avengers but all regular heroes, 'cept for Steeb, and Bucky a bit, cuz he got 'sperimented on just a teensy bit, and den he died when he fell off a train and Steeb was sad, and sometimes he's still sad, but Steeb told me dat it's good to 'member the happy parts, and dere was dis one time dat Steeb and Bucky were little, like me but bigger, and dey borrowed a bucket-" She rambled on cheerfully, smoothing Bucky Bear's soft fur as she talked. Her favorite person besides daddy and mommy was Steve, and her favorite subject besides Mulan was Bucky Bear's origin story. Between Steve's stories and Coulson's comic books, she had enough info to talk for _hours_.

The stranger didn't seem to mind. He sat cross legged on the floor in front of her and watched her face as she spoke about 'Steeb' and 'Buck' and 'Steeb's ma' and 'Bucky's ma' and 'de woman from de orphanage that I fowgot her name' and 'de grumpy Col Phillips' and 'Peggy Cawter' - that was Allie's third-favorite subject. She loved Natasha, Pepper, Peggy Carter, and Darcy, in that order.

"-But everybody's old now or dead cuz they're old, and Steeb told me Peggy's got sumtin' wrong with her memories so she doesn't know it's now, and it makes him sad so we don't talk about old-Peggy much, just young-Peggy, but dat's okay because he liked the drawing I made wif him and Peggy in it, and, I drew another one wif Bucky in it, but that one made Steeb a little sad. He kept it anyway, cuz he said it was a good drawing, and-" She stopped suddenly and tilted her head at him. "Why you keep staring?"

"Because," he said, rubbing at his temples. Her chattering was giving him a headache, but he didn't want her to stop. He ignored the pain and resumed his steady gaze.

She frowned at him. "It's wude to stare. Pepper told me so, and she's a lady." She kicked her feet against the legs of the chair. "I'm hungwy."

"There is no food."

She scowled at him. "You not a good kidnapper."

He raised an eyebrow. "You've been kidnapped before?"

She nodded. "Dey stuck me in a closet, but at least dey had snacks. If you live here why don't you have snacks?"

"I don't live here. This is a safe house. No one knows about it. If my handlers find out about it, though, we'll both be in trouble."

"Why?"

"If they see you, they'll kill you for real. Or they'll take your memories and turn you into a spy, too."

Her eyes widened. "Dat's bad."

"Yes it is."

"Why did you take me then?" she asked indignantly. "You a bad spy."

He sighed. "I don't know." He rubbed at his head. "I can't think. I'm malfunctioning. My head hurts." He needed recalibration. He needed maintenance. He needed-

"Turn de light on," Allie told him. "You's not s'posed to think too hard in the dark, Bwuce said. Gives you migwaines, den he's the Hulk and he's all growly."

He glared at her, but didn't see any harm in the suggestion. The windows were curtained, anyhow. He flipped the light on, and shoved the hair away from his face with a wince. The headache did not diminish.

Allie let out a little yelp at seeing his full features. "You Bucky!" she shrieked, scrambling out of the chair. "You look just like Bucky from the pictures!"

He growled. "Quiet!"

She couldn't be quiet. She was blowing her little four-year-old lid sky-high. "Why do you look like Bucky!?" she yelled. "You're a bad spy!"

He grabbed at his head as the headache pushed his eyes closed. "Shut up!" he yelled back.

"No! Take me home!" she demanded, and threw the first temper tantrum of her entire life as she started screaming, "TAKE ME HOME TAKE ME HOME TAKE ME HOME-"

"Fine!" He grabbed her around the waist, started for the door, and keeled over midway as pain blasted through his temples.

Allie fell out of his grasp, tumbled over the dusty carpet, and watched in fear as the stranger-that-looked-like-Bucky kneeled on the carpet clutching his head. The tumble had knocked the temper right out of her and now she felt like crying, or hiding. "You okay?" she asked nervously. "You not a Hulk, right?"

"No," he groaned, trying to block out the light and the sight of that stupid stuffed animal. He slid to a seat against the wall.

She grabbed her Bucky Bear. "Where's de phone? I call the amb-li-ance."

"Don't have a phone," he ground out between gritted teeth. "Be quiet, Becca."

"My name's not Becca," she said warily, after a moment. "Dat's Bucky's sister's name. She's old and lives in Queen. Steeb said so."

He groaned again, seeing a small girl carrying a ratty blanket, her thumb in her mouth. ' _Stop it, Becca, you'll get buck-teeth and then we'll both be called Buck'._ _She'd cried and gone to their mother for consolation. 'It's true, Becks, tell her Stevie-'_ Another flash of memory, two skinny boys, one blond and one brown, looking in a shop window. ' _One day, Bucky, we'll have a television. A television and enough food to be full every single day, and send your sis to school in Paris.'_

"Mister spy?" A soft hand patted his cheek, bringing him back to the present somewhat. "Mister spy? Why you cwyin'?"

He curled further into a ball. "I'm not," he gasped. "Crying's for girls."

"Steeb cwies," she informed him. "And if Steeb can cry you can cwy too."

Another flash of memory. _The blond boy, older and paler now, standing over a freshly covered grave, his eyes red-rimmed with unshed tears. 'It's okay to cry, Stevie. It's okay, she's your ma, nobody'll say nothing.' 'I can't, Buck, I ain't got tears left.' A muscled arm slung over skinny shoulders. 'That's okay too.'_

"Steve." He let out a strangled sob. "Steven Grant Rogers, my best friend, my brother. He was supposed to be my mission."

Allie's eyes widened to the size of small moons as she contemplated the fact that this might be the real Bucky. He looked like him. "How you the real Buck?" she asked. "Bucky died from the twain."

"No," came the choked reply. "No, the train. My arm, it _hurt_ , and-" _he was strapped to the table, screaming_ \- "HYDRA, they took me. Fixed me. Froze me." _Wiped his mind, forced him to learn Russian_. "I was the Asset." _'He's been too long out of the ice, wipe him again.'_ "But I'm _not_." It was a sob. "I'm me. I'm me." _James Buchanan Barnes, Sgt, service number 32557038_.

Allie watched in fascination as he started to shudder, his whole body shaking as he wept. And then she did what she'd done for all of the people in the Tower - she turned into a puppy, and nestled into his lap, resting her head on his heart.

He ignored her for a long time, and then suddenly went limp against the wall, one of his hands falling gently on her back.

She glanced up at him cautiously.

He was staring at the wall opposite, his gaze a thousand miles, seventy years, away. He pet her absently. "Steve always wanted a dog," he whispered, and when he spoke, his voice was different. Accented like Steve's when he was tired. "But he always had allergies, never could get one." He fell silent again.

Allie stayed there, afraid to move, afraid to leave he-who-might-be-Bucky, afraid to get caught by the bad-spies, afraid that if she tried to escape again that the Avengers wouldn't be able to find her. She would just have to stay put.

A~A~A~A

JARVIS's malfunction had lasted for eight minutes, twenty-two seconds, trapping Pepper in the office, and Allie in Steve's quarters. But when he came back online and began to run detailed diagnostics, Pepper was still there and Allie was- where was Allie?

Dread began to form in the pit of JARVIS's processors. He ran a scan for all her known bio-signatures, all throughout the tower, and found nothing. Absolutely nothing.

He scoured the security footage from Captain Rogers' apartments. There was nothing. They were blank. He switched instead to heat signatures, and panicked when he realized that there were two heat signatures in Captain Rogers' apartment until their abrupt exit towards the stairwell sixty-seconds before his main processors came back online. He went back and tracked the heat signature into the building, into Sir's lab, out of Sir's lab, into Captain Rogers' quarters, and then back out the building with Allie. The size of the heat signature put it about a man, six foot tall.

He accessed the nearby cameras in the street and captured the image of a man dressed in full black sprinting away from the tower, a small bundle on his shoulder. He started a program to track the intruder through the surveillance system of the city.

All of this took .5 seconds for JARVIS to discover, and then he informed Mrs. Stark. By the time he'd given Pepper all the details, he'd lost track of the intruder on cameras.

He tried another tack, and pinged her Bucky Bear. It registered in a shoebox apartment on the other side of New York, and it was stationery. "I believe I've found her," he announced.

Pepper let out a sigh of relief. "Inform the Avengers," she told JARVIS.

They were on their way back from Siberia when JARVIS commed them. Clint slammed the throttle on the quinjet to maximum speed as soon as JARVIS started talking, and Thor and Iron Man jumped out of the jet to be the first responders.

A~A~A~A

Allie was still on Maybe-Bucky's lap. He was still muttering to himself, sometimes in Russian, sometimes in English, and the only thing that seemed to ground him was the puppy's soft fur, and her little head on his knee.

She ignored the grumbling in her tummy, and focused on the thought of the Avengers coming to rescue her and Maybe-Bucky. If he was Bucky, then that meant he wasn't a spy, and if he wasn't an actual HYDRA spy, they'd probably try and kill him, because HYDRA was evil. She would have to explain it to the Avengers, so they could go get rid of HYDRA.

Then there was the crackle of thunder, and the whoosh of a repulsor, and Thor and Iron Man burst into the apartment. Maybe-Bucky didn't respond, still staring at the wall.

Allie jumped out of his lap, and shifted immediately to her regular shape. "Don't hurt him," she said, holding a hand out to Thor. "He's Bucky. Maybe. He's Maybe-Bucky. His head hurts."

Thor picked her up and hugged her tightly. "We thought we'd lost you, child," he said, his eyes suspiciously bright. He held her close. "Are you hurt?"

"No. Just hungry. And my feets cold." She hummed appreciatively as he wrapped her up in his nice warm red cloak.

Tony couldn't take his eyes off the almost-catatonic man on the floor. He was a dead ringer for Bucky Barnes. "Allie? Did he say who he was?" he asked, opening his face mask.

"He said he was a bad-word-et," she said.

"A what?"

She pointed at her little bum. "Dat."

"Asset?" Tony asked, biting his cheek to stop from grinning.

"Yeah."

Tony gave a suspicious cough and then sobered. "All right. Anything else?"

"Dat after he fell off the twain dey fixed him and now he works for HYDRA 'cuz he fowgot who he was, and dey stuck him in a fweezer, and he knows lots of stuff about Steeb when he was little. And he thought I was Becca but I'm not, and then he was like dat for this whole time, and he's got a awful headache." She snuggled into the cloak.

Tony cleared his throat. "Sergeant Barnes?" he asked sharply, imitating Steve's soldier-tone.

Maybe-Bucky's head snapped up and he stiffened to attention against the wall.

Tony swallowed the lump of disbelief in his throat. "Can you tell me where you are, Sgt?" he asked.

Probably-Bucky blinked. "New York?" he asked hesitantly. He looked up at the metal suited man, and focused on his face. "Howard?" And then he pitched forward in a dead faint.

Allie let out a little shriek of surprise.

Then Tony noticed the bleeding coming from Probably-Bucky's ears and nose. "Some sort of brain damage, especially if he's been brainwashed," he said grimly. "Cap, ETA?"

"Ten minutes out."

"Allie's secure, and we've got the intruder in custody," Tony said, scooping up the unconscious man with a grunt. Something clanged when he picked him up, and he dropped him again to search for weapons. "Meet as at the Tower instead."

"Copy that, Iron Man."

Tony rifled through Probably-Bucky's pockets and clothes, looking for weapons. He took away ten knives, two small pistols, a baton-thing, a hard drive from the Tower, a carbon-strand garrote, several trackers, and- he stared at Probably-Bucky's left arm. It was completely metal. "Whoa," he said, after a second.

"Whoooooaaaa," Allie echoed, from Thor's arms. "He's got an Iron-Man arm!"

Tony shook his head and picked up the unconscious agent. "All right, let's go. Thor, you got her?"

"Yes."

They took off from the apartment, and landed on the roof of the Tower only a minute before the quinjet landed. Thor had barely unwrapped Allie from his cloak before she was in her parents' arms, and it fell to Bruce to actually turn the quinjet's engines off.

Steve and Coulson went directly to the Hulk Out room which was the most secure area in the Tower, and when they turned the corner, Steve stopped in his tracks. He turned pale, swallowed hard a few times, and then slowly approached the transparent aluminum glass. "Is that-" he started. "Bucky?" he finished.

"Maybe," Tony said, stepping out of his Iron Man suit. "Probably." He clapped Steve on the shoulder. "Bruce is going to check him over for brain damage, because until he heard Allie's stories about Steeb, he was an asset for HYDRA."

Steve turned another shade of white. "What."

Tony held up the hard drive from Bucky's pocket. "I didn't even know I had this information, it was in the data dump from SHIELD when I hacked it last, but apparently it was worth stealing by an ancient organization, so I'm going to go analyze this. You keep an eye on your ghost buddy." He nodded to Coulson meaningfully and went out.

Coulson kept a level head while Steve paced and fretted and stared at the unconscious man. Bruce kept a level head as he methodically ran scans and tests and cleaned up the blood on Probably-Bucky's face. JARVIS kept a level head while he ran identity checks on this unknown man. It was JARVIS that confirmed that Probably-Bucky was Definitely-Bucky.

Steve had to sit down and put his head between his knees to keep the room from spinning. "I can't believe it," he whispered. "How..."

"The little miss mentioned that Sgt. Barnes said he'd been frozen," JARVIS said helpfully.

"Cryo-stasis," Coulson muttered. Inwardly, he was rejoicing. Captain America reunited with Sgt. Barnes after seventy years... maybe Bucky would sign his trading cards, too. You know, once he was de-brain-washed.

At that moment Natasha came in with Allie in her arms. Allie wriggled down from Natasha's grip and ran over to Steve, throwing herself in his arms. "Is it Bucky?" she asked excitedly. "It is him for reals?"

"Yes, it is, doll," Steve said, hugging her tightly.

She grinned happily and kissed his cheek. "Good. Now you have your friend back." Her smile faded as she looked at Bucky. "Is he okay?"

"He will be," Bruce reassured her. "He's just sleeping right now."

She nodded. "He needs lots of sleep. He was cwyin, Steeb."

"Was he?" Steve asked, frowning.

"Lots." She touched Steve's cheeks. "He 'members you were 'llergic to puppies. You still 'llergic to puppies, Steeb?"

"No, not anymore."

"Good." She hugged him again, and then stepped back. "Mommy, can we have a snack now?"

"Yeah."

"Hold on, can I give you a checkup first?" Bruce asked, drawing Allie over to the portable scanner.

Natasha left her in Bruce's care and moved to the glass window. "The Winter Soldier," she murmured, staring at the red star on the silver arm. "He was a ghost, Steve. A legend. If I'd known he was Bucky, your Bucky, I would've told you..."

"I know," Steve said, leaning his head back against the glass to look up at her. "I'm going to need your help with him, though."

She nodded.

"All right, you're all good," Bruce declared, giving Allie a gold sticker. "Now go have a snack and a warm bath and then go to bed, okay?"

"Okay Bwuce." She was scooped up by her mother, and they went upstairs.

Surprisingly, that night, Allie didn't have any nightmares, her satisfaction at finding the real 'Bucky Bear' overwhelming her fear at the beginning of her adventure.

It was James Buchanan Barnes who sweated and screamed the entire night through, his mental programming passing the critical point and beginning to break down. He remembered so much, and he didn't know if it was real or not. But all through it, he heard the voice of a friend, a brother, that kept him breathing.

 **A/N: So as you can see, I'm not sticking with movie canon. Things will be different, and I will be incorporating certain ideas from my last couple of reviewers. Thanks for the suggestions!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: So, here we are. I triumphed over RL! and managed to get this out. Some fluff, some start of adventure. Enjoy!**

Bucky was in the Hulk-out room for three days, alternately staring at the wall, screaming at the ghosts in his mind, and begging for his handlers not to wipe him. He refused to eat, couldn't sleep, and got violent when anyone tried to approach him.

All Steve could do to help him was keep talking. That seemed to be the only thing that would stop Barnes from damaging himself. Steve talked himself hoarse, drank a bucket of tea, and kept talking.

JARVIS recorded everything Barnes mentioned, everything he said about HYDRA, every mission he mentioned, every memory either false or imagined. Between the data in the hard drive and Barnes' information, they were rapidly compiling evidence that HYDRA was in fact not obsolete, but alive and well.

After the three-day mark, Bucky went from slightly homicidal to near-catatonic. Again. The only thing he did was sit on the cot and stare at the opposite wall. Nothing Steve said could move him. He just, sat.

Allie came down to the Hulk room, that day, with two smoothies in hand and a protective Clint two steps behind her. "Steeb," she said, walking over to where the discouraged Steve was sitting on the floor.

"Hey doll," Steve said quietly, mustering up a smile.

She handed him one smoothie, and crawled into his lap. "How's Bucky?" she asked.

Steve sighed. "He's going to be okay, sweetheart. I hope."

She glanced over his shoulder at Bucky. "Do you think, I can give him de smoothie, Steeb? He needs pwotein. Bwuce said."

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to go in there," Steve said firmly. "I'll give it to him, okay?"

"Kay." She stood up and watched him approach the door.

Bucky didn't look over when Steve came in.

"Hey, Buck," Steve said gently, holding the smoothie out. "Allie brought you a smoothie. You want to try it?"

No reply.

Allie took matters into her own tiny hands, and ran into the Hulk-out room.

"Allie no!" Clint said, darting after her.

Allie ran right up to Bucky, turned into a puppy, and jumped into his lap, putting her little paws on his chest and licking at his cheek. She yipped.

He looked down at her, the first response he'd given in four days, and put his right hand on her back.

She licked his cheek again, the puppy-version of a kiss, and pressed her nose under his jaw in a cuddle.

He gently smoothed his hand up and down her back, and absently accepted the smoothie from Steve with his other hand. He drank the smoothie, petting Allie with the other hand, and returned to staring at the wall.

Allie curled up in his lap and gave Clint a look that plainly said, "I'm fine, go away."

Clint dragged Steve out of there, and they both took up posts outside the Hulk room. "If Natasha comes in, it's your fault," Clint said firmly.

Steve nodded.

Natasha did not come in, and Allie stayed with Bucky for almost two whole hours. Then she bopped his nose with hers, wagged her tail, and jumped to the floor. Bucky watched her go, and then turned his gaze to Steve. His expression was almost blank, but now he just looked lost.

"Hungry?" Steve asked gently.

A hesitant nod.

"All right. We'll get you something to eat." Steve gave him an encouraging smile. "Food here is lots better than in the forties. Have you had a stuffed crust pizza yet?" He chatted to him cheerfully, Allie chiming in periodically, while Clint went and got everybody slices of pizza.

Bucky silently accepted the plate of pizza from Steve, and then looked at Allie. She smiled at him. "Like dis," she said, lifting up the pizza and taking a bite. He copied her actions, and his expression lightened when she smiled cheesily at him.

Allie helped Bucky eat an entire pizza and a half (she nibbled on one slice while he ate the rest), and then he fell into a slight food coma. She curled up next to him as a kitten, and purred like a toy freight train. Bucky patted her little head with his metal hand oh-so-gently, and stared at the ceiling.

Then Natasha came in. She assessed the situation, turned white as a sheet, and pinched Clint in the arm, her Look promising mayhem and murder.

"Ooowwwwww," Clint protested in a pained whisper, "Allie's fine."

"It's the principle of the thing," Natasha said. She jerked her chin towards the door. "Go. I've got this."

"All right." Clint pressed a quick kiss to her mouth, and headed up to the common room.

Another hour, and then Natasha stepped up to the open door of the Hulk room. "Allie?" she said quietly.

The kitten looked over, her ears perked inquisitively.

Bucky's glance slid over to her, assessed her as a threat, and stiffened slightly.

"It's bedtime, sweetie," Natasha continued, in her most calming tone.

Allie shifted into her human form, and asked, "Ten more minutes?"

"Not tonight, baby."

She wrapped her arms around Bucky's metal arm and looked up at him, her eyes wide. "You goin' be okay, Bucky? Wif Steeb?"

Bucky managed to give her a small smile. "I think I'll be okay, doll." That was the longest rational sentence he'd said in four days.

Allie gave him a kiss on the forehead, gave Steve a kiss as well, and went off with her mom.

Bucky watched the small child go, and then turned to Steve, meeting his eyes for the first time. "Steve."

Steve swallowed hard. "Yeah?"

"Is it true that Becca's still alive?"

Steve gave him a small smile. "Yeah." He told Bucky all about his visit to Becca Smith, nee Barnes, and the fates of all the Howling Commandos and their families.

Bucky listened intently, and asked questions.

As the conversation rambled to an end, Steve rubbed a hand over his face. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For leaving you behind." Steve gave him a look. "If I'd known, Buck, I swear I wouldn't have stopped looking for you-"

"And then we would both be dead, idiot," Bucky interrupted. His memories might be jumbled, but his tactical mind was sharper than ever, and he could see the possibilites unfolding. None of them allowed for Steve's survival to the twenty-first century, unless he'd been brainwashed too, and that was something that could NOT happen.

A~A~A~A

After that, Allie came every day to sit with Bucky, either as a fluffy animal, or a cuddly child, and while he was distracted with Allie, Steve managed to get him to eat. Otherwise, Bucky couldn't stomach food, couldn't force himself to swallow it.

The times when Allie was not there, were difficult. James Barnes hadn't had the opportunity to exercise free will in over seventy years, and making choices was almost painful. Choosing between showering or watching a movie made him retreat for half a day. He begged Steve to just order him to do things, but Steve refused.

So they started simple.

"Would you like to shower?" That was only yes or no. And yes, Bucky would like to shower. So he did. And as the hot water cascaded over him, he cried. And then stayed in the shower for an hour, enjoying the endless steam and the fresh soap.

"Would you like to have coffee?" That was also yes or no. And yes, he would love coffee.

"Would you like to sleep in Steve's guest room?" That was an emphatic NO. He didn't trust himself not to fall under the programming of the Asset, and he didn't want to hurt anyone. So he stayed in the Hulk-out room.

"Peaches and cream or chocolate mint?" That one, Bucky could answer. "Just chocolate." Allie and Steve had beamed for an hour straight.

Two weeks after the ice cream breakthrough, Bucky requested to see Coulson. "I need to talk to him. I need to talk to SHIELD."

"What can I do for you, Sgt. Barnes?" Coulson asked kindly.

"I need to tell you about HYDRA." Bucky rubbed at his temples. "I don't know what's real or not, but, I need to make up for, for what I did. They're still out there, and, it's bad."

"All right," Coulson said, clicking his pen. "Tell me everything, and let SHIELD worry about the rest."

Two hours into Bucky's painful monologue, Coulson made JARVIS lock down the Tower and go into complete radio silence with SHIELD. He left Bucky to decompress for a bit, and gathered the rest of the Avengers in a conference room.

"What's the problem?" Steve asked, all business.

Coulson shook his head. "There are HYDRA agents within SHIELD."

All the Avengers gaped at him. "What."

Coulson shook his head again. "At this point I think it's safer to say that there are HYDRA agents within every level of government, in every government."

"What."

"The handlers Bucky mentioned, the missions, the info, that only could have come from SHIELD, or the World Security Council. Given the way that SHIELD has been going, especially with the Phase-2 weapons, and several other projects we're not supposed to talk about, I think all of the WSC's orders to SHIELD have been initiated by HYDRA." He started putting up specific examples.

That, combined with the data Tony had copied from SHIELD, combined with some subtle JARVIS-hacking, revealed the ugly truth. HYDRA had been there all along.

"What are we going to do?" Bruce asked nervously.

Natasha looked pale. "When I joined SHIELD I thought I was joining the good guys," she murmured, staring at the screen. "But I just traded in different faces for the same villains."

"We've all been deceived," Steve said grimly. "It seems like my war never ended."

"So what are we going to do?" Clint asked, looking at the Avengers' leader.

Steve shook his head. "For now, we're going to pretend we don't know anything about anything. We're going to gather intelligence. We're going to keep SHIELD off our backs. And we're not going to tell anyone about Bucky."

A~A~A~A


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: So, this is a very short chapter, just to take off the edge of suspense.**

Of course keeping the Avengers part of the tower on complete lock down raised more red flags than a presidential assassination. Fury was on their doorstep, banging on the bulkhead, before twenty-four hours had passed. "SOMEBODY START TALKING OR-"

"What can we do for you director?" Tony asked blandly, opening the door.

"You can tell me what the-" Fury paused when he saw Allie sitting on Tony's shoulders. "What is going on," he amended, when Tony glared.

"Come on in," Tony said. "We've been waiting for you."

"All you needed to do was call," Fury grumbled, following Tony into the conference room where all the Avengers were assembled. "You didn't have to put half the planet on alert when you locked the tower down."

"Mood swings," Tony said. "Sorry." He ushered him into the conference room, where the other Avengers were assembled, and closed the door. "JARVIS?"

"Blackout initiated," JARVIS said.

"What's this about?" Fury asked.

"HYDRA," Steve said simply.

Fury raised his eyebrow.

Coulson explained to him exactly what was going on, and the Avengers had the satisfaction of watching the blood drain from Fury's face as he realized exactly what was going on in his organization.

"I can't believe I didn't see this," Fury said, scowling furiously.

"Well of course not, you've only got one eye," Tony said blithely.

Allie smacked him on the arm. "Dat's mean, Tony."

"Sorry."

Fury smirked briefly, and then sobered. "How did you come by this information?"

Natasha spoke up. "We managed to turn one of HYDRA's principal assets."

"Who?"

"The Winter Soldier."

Fury's jaw literally dropped. "Did you just say what I thought you said?"

"Putty-tat," Allie said, and giggled hysterically to herself before turning into a kitten. She crawled into Clint's lap and meowed.

"The Winter Soldier," Fury repeated. "Russia's most famous ghost. You have him."

"Yep."

"I would very much like to know how you managed that."

"It was Allie," Tony said. "Apparently not even brainwashed assassins can resist cute puppies."

Fury rubbed his temples. "All right. So what's your plan? I'm assuming you have one."

The plan was to do nothing. Yet. On the surface. Underneath, like ducks, the loyal SHIELD agents were going to be paddling in frenzy.

A~A~A~A

Allie found the next couple of months trying. Her parents and Coulson were busy at SHIELD, trying to determine who was HYDRA and who was not. Steve and Tony were trying to root out HYDRA strongholds that Bucky had identified. That left Bruce working from the Tower and taking care of Allie. And Allie took care of Bucky, as much as she could.

"He needs a therapist," Bruce told Steve over secure vid-link. "I'm not qualified to treat him, and Allie doesn't need to be exposed to his worst moments either."

Steve scrubbed at his face with one hand, and sighed. "I know. But we can't get anyone from SHIELD and there's no way a civilian therapist can handle someone with Bucky's training."

"Well what about somebody from the VA?" Bruce asked.

Steve paused. "Well, I guess, technically he is former military."

JARVIS spoke up. "With your permission, Captain, I can screen qualified counselors and therapists."

"That would be great JARVIS thank you."

"My pleasure captain."

Allie popped her head into the picture. "Steeb, when are you coming back?"

Steve sighed apologetically. "I don't know sweetheart."

She pouted and disappeared from the screen.

Steve looked at Bruce. "What's up with her?"

Bruce sighed. "The super spies are working seventeen hour days and come home only to eat and sleep. They're taking as many missions as they can get their hands on to scope out the lay of the land. Allie is feeling a bit neglected. But she hasn't complained at all. She just gets quiet and goes to sit with Bucky."

Steve sighed. "Give Allie a hug for me?"

"Will do."

Bruce signed off and went to give Allie her hug. He found a pouty-looking kitten on one of the bookshelves, her head resting on a stuffed toy. "Hey Allie. Steve wanted me to give you a hug."

She meowed plaintively.

He picked her up off the shelf and she snuggled into the crook of his neck. "Are you hungry?" he asked, taking her to the kitchen.

She shook her head and meowed again.

"Are you sure?"

She nodded.

He made a sandwich and poured some applesauce into a bowl. "You sure you don't want to eat some?"

She hopped off his shoulder and lapped at the applesauce disinterestedly, and then she crawled back into his sweater.

Bruce ate his sandwich and left the applesauce out in case Allie changed her mind. As he was wiping the counters, Clint and Natasha entered the kitchen, looking grim and exhausted. "How'd it go?" Bruce asked.

"Ugh." Natasha slammed back a shot of vodka and sighed. "We've discovered twenty HYDRA agents within the upper echelons of SHIELD and the WSC. And those were the obvious ones."

Clint shook his head. "If I had to spend another twenty seconds in that room with Sitwell I would have punched his face off. Is there pizza?"

"Yeah, in the bottom of the fridge."

"Where's Allie?" Natasha asked.

Bruce opened his mouth to answer, but tiny sharp kitten claws tapped his neck. He closed his mouth. "Somewhere around, napping."

Natasha sighed. "All right, good."

Clint kissed his wife gently. "I'm going to bed, hun."

"Okay. If you find Allie, ask her if she wants to come cuddle with me." Natasha sighed. "I'll be in the gym."

Bruce stayed quiet until both the super spies were well out of earshot, and then asked quietly, "Allie, don't you want to go cuddle with your mommy?"

Allie jumped onto the counter and transformed into a little girl. "No."

"Why not, baby? Don't you miss her?"

"No," she said stubbornly.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Are you positive?"

Allie's eyes filled with tears and she shook her head.

"Okay. We're going to settle this." Bruce picked her up and took her to the Barton-Romanoff floor. "Clint? Tasha?"

"In here."

He went into the bedroom and plopped Allie on the bed. "Found her," he said. "And, the three of you need to talk." He quickly walked back out the door.

Clint and Natasha looked at Allie. She looked back at them and crossed her arms petulantly. Clint sat down on the bed next to her and held out a hand. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Nothing." She frowned down at the blanket. "I'm tiwed. I wanna go to bed."

"Do you want me to read you a story-"

"No stowy." Allie hopped off the bed and went into her room. "Good night."

Clint and Natasha stared after her in absolute shock. "She's never refused a bedtime story," Natasha said. "Not ever."

"What did we do?" Clint asked. "JARVIS? Is she okay?"

"Miss Allie is in perfect health," JARVIS said crisply.

Natasha went after Allie, and gently knocked on the open door. "Allie?"

Allie was poking at a tablet, doing multiplication problems of her own free will. "I'm doing maff mommy."

"Yeah. Do you like maff now?"

"JARBIS taught it to me, like puzzle." Allie held up the tablet. "Is not twenty minutes, I need to finish."

"I thought you were tired."

Allie pouted.

Natasha reached out and took the tablet away gently. "All right baby, what's going on?" She reached out to gently lift Allie's chin. "C'mon sweetheart, tell mommy."

Allie sighed. "You has work tomorrow mommy, you need sweep. I'm fine."

Natasha frowned. "Are you mad because daddy and I are working a lot?"

Allie's eyes filled with tears and she shook her head. "No. You gonna save Bucky and Cou-son and Fuwy and Steeb and de whole world. You gotta stop HYDRA. I's not impowtant for right now. Is okay."

Natasha's heart broke and she pulled Allie into her arms. "No, no, baby, it's not okay." She cupped Allie's face with her palm. "For me and daddy, you come first, always. I'm sorry we haven't spent much time with you, but I promise, you are what's most important to us. I love you, so much." She kissed Allie's cheek softly. "I'm sorry, baby. Forgive me?"

Allie threw her arms around Natasha and squeezed tightly. "I missed you so, so much mommy." She started crying.

Natasha held her close. "I missed you too, little one, so much." She noticed Clint standing in the doorway with a stricken look on his face and motioned him over.

He knelt in front of Allie. "I'm sorry too, sweetheart. I promise, we'll make it up to you." Allie reached over to hug him, and he pulled her into his arms, and kissed the top of her head. "I love you," he said.

"Stowy?" she asked.

"Definitely."

After that, Clint and Natasha made sure to leave time each day for their daughter. No matter the threat, they had to put family first.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Stay tuned for more Marvel canon bits being tampered with, and fluffs galore :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Not dead! Just extremely busy... here's the next bit so you don't have to wait so long in between posts.**

"Tony, remember your old friend Justin Hammer?"

"That sorry excuse for an engineer? What'd he do now?" Tony asked distractedly.

"Well, he's being funded by HYDRA and apparently trying to remake the super soldier serum," Clint said cheerfully.

Tony groaned in the manner of a slowly-dying cow, and rubbed at his face with greasy hands, leaving black streaks behind. "Okay, I think I've been playing my music too loud because, what? He's not smart enough to even attempt it-"

"Have you heard of a biologist named Maya Hansen?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Uh, no?"

"Yes you have. She's helping him, and she's smart enough. And, they're working off of old SSR notes on the serum which somebody from HYDRA gave them access to through SHIELD." Clint gave him the dossier. "Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to stop them."

Tony stared suspiciously at the tablet in his hands. "This isn't going to suddenly melt into acid, is it?" he asked.

"No."

"Okay, cool. I can do that. Where's Steve? Shouldn't the original super soldier be working on this?"

"He's working with Bucky right now."

"Oh. Never mind. Can I have Thor and Bruce?"

"Yes, as long as Bruce stays in the tower. His words, not mine."

"Cool."

With the two most unsubtle members of the team taking down the most unsubtle bit of HYDRA's current machinations, it didn't take long for events to show up on TV.

"YOU BLEW UP THE MANSION!"

Tony winced at Pepper's rage. "I had to lure them out somehow! How was I supposed to know that their super soldiers explode?!"

Pepper took a deep breath and counted to ten in silent French. "Are you hurt?" she demanded.

"No. And Thor's fine too."

"Good. Are you done?"

"Yes."

"Good. Get back here, you've got a meeting with the board to explain why you're not clinically insane."

"Yes ma'am."

A~A~A~A

There was a month-long period of peace, in which JARVIS, Bruce, and Steve vetted a trustworthy VA counselor named Sam Wilson for Bucky, and got the reluctant Sgt. Barnes talking. Sam was a laidback man with a strong loyal streak, and he thought the Avengers were awesome. He also thought Allie was the cutest little kid he'd ever seen, including his own nieces. He also heartily approved of pet therapy.

"You guys have a lot of pets," he said, watching a grey bunny hop into the living area. "What is that, like the fifth one I've seen since last week?"

The bunny stopped and looked at him.

So did Clint and Steve and Bucky. Bucky started to laugh.

Sam raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You, pets," Steve started, covering his mouth with his hand to hide his grin. "Sorry, we forgot to tell you."

"Does Tony Stark have a petting zoo?" Sam asked cautiously.

Clint snickered. "Nothing so crazy." He knelt down and held out a hand to the grey bunny. "Allie baby, come here and show Sam what's going on."

"Wait, you named your pet after your ki-" Sam stopped in mid-word as he watched the bunny transform into Allie. She leaned into Clint's arms and smiled shyly at Sam.

"Hi," she said.

Sam's jaw dropped. "You're a shapeshifter?"

"Uh-huh."

"That's awesome, Allie."

"Yep."

"Show him your favorite one," Steve urged gently, grinning.

Sam watched in awe as Allie transformed into a red-scaled dragon and poofed a little cloud of smoke. "Whoooooaa. Okay. That's like the coolest thing ever."

The dragon preened happily and turned back into Allie. "I wike dragons," she said.

Clint swooped her up in a hug. "And now it's time for all dragons to have lunch!" He carried a giggling Allie off to the kitchen.

With Sam's help, Bucky slowly continued to develop his social skills and regain his individuality. He was different than the old Bucky though. Where the old Bucky was all smooth charm, the new Bucky was more awkward. His sense of humor came back quickly though, and he and Steve picked fun at each other all day long on good days. Bucky was sharper now, too, in a way that war and constant tactical missions had taught him to be. And of course, he was a super soldier now, so he, Steve, and Thor were eating all day long. Allie was keeping score of how many hot dogs they could eat. So far Thor was in the lead, but Bucky had seventy years of TV to catch up on and he was slowly gaining on the thunder god.

 **A/N 2: Stay tuned for more shenanigans :)**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hi!**

Allie liked having work days with Natasha. She would play quietly or read in the office, and Natasha would work at the desk. But when Natasha was just reading information or thinking, she would sit on the beanbag, and Allie would sit curled up next to her.

Today, Allie was drawing the African jungle, and Natasha was efficiently hacking SHIELD's numerous databases. There was soft classical music playing in the background, courtesy of JARVIS, and there was a plate of cookies on the desk.

"Hm."

Allie looked up at Natasha's dissatisfied 'hmph'. "What is it, mommy?"

"I don't know, _malyshka_ , something strange." Natasha tapped at the keys again. "There's some sort of AI blocking entry into certain areas of the SHIELD database..." she muttered to herself in Russian for a bit. "JARVIS, get Tony down here."

"Right away, Agent Romanoff."

Allie sat in Natasha's lap and tried to braid her hair while Tony hacked his way past the strange AI. "This is really weird," he said, "like, weirder than JARVIS, weird. I can't get into the AI's programming at all."

"What can you get?" Natasha asked.

"IP address? I think?" Tony pulled up a map. "Somewhere in New Jersey. Camp Leighton." His eyes widened. "Isn't that where Steve trained before he was Cap?" He and Natasha shared a glance. "J, assemble the Avengers."

"Yes sir."

When they told Steve, he looked like someone had punched him in the gut. "HYDRA's running some sort of AI from that base?" he asked, once Tony had explained everything in his rambling fashion.

"Yes."

Steve nodded. "Tony, you and I will go to Camp Leighton and investigate."

"Take me with you," Clint added. "You need someone to watch your backs."

Steve gave another sharp nod. "All right. Thirty minutes, guys. Let's go."

Allie stopped him on the way out, and held up her arms for a hug.

He scooped her up and hugged her tightly.

"Be safe, Steeb," she said firmly.

"I'll try my hardest, doll."

"Do or do not," she admonished. "Dere is no twy." She kissed his cheek and wriggled down to say goodbye to Clint.

"Did she just quote Yoda at you?" Tony asked, astonished.

Steve grinned slightly. "Yeah."

Tony wiped a fake tear from his eye. "Our baby's growing up so fast." He slapped Steve on the shoulder and went to suit up.

A~A~A~A

Camp Leighton was less than an hour away, and Coulson and Natasha were their support on comms once they touched down.

The camp appeared deserted, but Tony tracked the energy signature to one of the armories. Clint stayed back to guard the exit while the other two broke in and headed underground. What they found was...

"Welcome back Captain Rogers," said a voice from Steve's nightmares.

Steve felt himself turning white as a sheet, and Tony subtly grabbed his bicep. "Whose voice is that?" the genius asked.

"You were supposed to be dead," Steve said, not hearing Tony. "I thought you were dead."

"You thought the Winter Soldier was dead but here we are," the voice said gleefully.

"Okay, seriously, who are you?" Tony asked, annoyed.

"Oh excuse me, Mr. Stark. I am Dr. Armin Zola."

Tony's jaw dropped. " _You_ are the computer?"

"Yes."

"You're whose been protecting the HYDRA division of SHIELD," Steve said calmly.

"Clever isn't it, Captain? No hacker can infiltrate a human mind."

A~A~A~A

Clint steadied his breathing from his sniper perch, his eyes sweeping the air and the ground for any sign of movement. As soon as Iron Man and Cap had gone into the bunker, they'd lost communications. The bunker was probably lined with lead. All Clint could do was wait, and report 'no change' to Coulson and Natasha.

Ten tense minutes later, a muffled explosion sounded. And from Clint's horrified point of view, the entire underground bunker collapsed in on itself. "Cap!" he yelled into the comm. "Iron Man! Anybody!"

A cough, and then a rustle of movement from a nearby stand of trees. "We're fine," Steve rasped. "Came out the sewer line just in time. The bunker's gone."

Clint sighed in relief when he saw both of them come out from the trees, looking distinctly charred. "You okay, Cap?" he asked.

"I'm fine." Steve still looked shell-shocked.

"Fine being a relative term that means not fine at all," Tony added crisply. "Let's go. HYDRA knows we're on to them."

They returned to the base and briefed the rest of the team. Tony did most of the talking, and Steve added terse comments when needed.

"I think now would be a good time to go to Defcon One," Tony finished soberly.

"Agreed," Coulson said. "From this point forward, no one except us goes in or out of the Tower."

Clint cleared his throat. "We've just painted a neon target on our backs, I know," he said, "but what about Allie and Pepper? They can't stay here and be targeted with the rest of us."

"Where can we send them that HYDRA can't reach?" Coulson asked, his tone compassionate.

Clint glanced at Thor. "How about Asgard?"

Thor shook his head. "The Bifrost has not been repaired yet, and to travel by dark matter is too dangerous for a mortal."

Natasha reached over to take Clint's hand. "We'll just have to be better than all of HYDRA," she said, giving him a crooked half-smile. "Easy as pie."

A~A~A~A

The first attempt on the tower came the very next day. The two HYDRA agents got halfway through the first layer of decryption in JARVIS's elevator protocols before he locked them out and sprayed the area with knock-out gas.

The second attempt was sneakier - someone wearing a mask of Fury's biometric readings managed to get into SHIELD's mainframe, and through there, into JARVIS's backdoor. They accessed the video cameras before JARVIS managed to kick them out.

HYDRA now knew about Bucky, and their priority was to retrieve their fallen asset, either dead or alive...

The third attempt on the tower came at three-thirty in the morning. No one was awake except JARVIS - and Bucky. He'd been fighting off the remnants of a nightmare when the alarm sounded. He jolted off the couch and reached for the weapons and comm he _knew_ were under the coffee table. He was armed and ready for battle by the time Steve, no, Captain America, entered the living room.

"You okay?" his long-time friend asked him.

Bucky nodded, calmly checking the magazine of the gun. Full. "I think they know I'm here."

"Good bet." Steve winced as an explosion sounded. "Everyone all right?" he asked, raising a finger to his comm.

"Fine," Clint said.

"I've got Allie," Bruce chimed in.

"I have an eye on the intruders," Natasha said calmly.

"J, how are our protocols doing?" Tony asked.

"Fine sir."

"Good."

"They still outnumber us three to one," Natasha said, "and that's including the bots and civilians."

Steve grimaced. "Don't worry Buck. We're not going to let them take you."

"Maybe it would be better if-" Bucky started.

"No," Steve said firmly. "They can't have you."

"The Cap has spoken," Clint added over comms, grinning.

There was a sudden clang from somewhere. "They have breached the elevator," Thor reported, and grunted in effort.

"On my way to you," Steve said. "Bucky, go back to where Bruce and Allie are. I don't want you getting hurt."

Bucky went. He made it to the second-to-top floor just in time to see Bruce drop to the floor, a thick tranq dart protruding from his neck. "BRUCE!" Allie shrieked, and shrieked again when three HYDRA agents popped out of the vents.

Bucky reacted on instinct, throwing himself forward to cover Allie. He got off one shot before the HYDRA agents took cover, and he pulled Allie behind the bookshelf. "Snake," he breathed quietly.

She shifted into a tiny garter snake, and he watched her move behind the bookshelf. That was one less thing to worry about.

"Asset," the HYDRA agent called. "We have secured the tower. You can come out of hiding. Bring the shapeshifter."

Bucky's teeth gritted together. "No," he said.

There was a pause, and then a sigh. "He's broken through programming," one of them muttered. "We'll have to recapture and wipe him."

"Use the keywords," the other one urged. "He might help us in subduing the other Avengers."

Bucky's heart dropped into his stomach, and two seconds later, he decided. He burst from his hiding spot, a furious calm in his eyes as he methodically dropped all of the HYDRA agents in the room. "Stay," he ordered in the general direction of Allie, and stalked off silently to finish his mission. No one was going to touch his team.

Natasha and Tony, pinned down inside the gym of all places, watched in astonishment as Bucky burst into the room like an avenging angel and took care of the problem in less than a minute. He leveled a glare at Natasha and Tony. "Allie's behind the bookcase," he growled, and went to help Steve.

As soon as the HYDRA agents were neutralized, Bucky lost the wild look in his eyes, and sagged heavily against the nearest wall.

"Buck?" Steve was suddenly beside him, and touched his shoulder. "You hit?"

Bucky shook his head. "I just realized... I didn't do what they said." He gave Steve a slow grin. "I chose not to. I didn't follow orders."

Steve beamed at him, and grabbed him in a hug. "I'm really proud of you, Bucky," he said.

Bucky shoved him away, ducking his head. "Whatever, punk. It was about time, wasn't it?"

Thor clapped him on the shoulder. "You fought well, James," he said.

Two floors above, Tony was trying to revive a still-unconscious Bruce, and Natasha was hugging Allie tightly. "I'm okay mommy," Allie was saying, her voice muffled in Natasha's shoulder. "Bucky totally saved me."

"Yes he did," Natasha said, smiling. She stood, scooping Allie onto her hip. "How about we go back to bed?"

Allie shook her head. "M'not sleepy no more."

"Okay." Natasha went to find Sam. "Could you sit and watch Mulan with her while we deal with this?" she asked, gesturing vaguely.

"Sure," Sam said, patting the seat cushion next to him. "C'mon Allie, let's defeat the Huns."

"Yeah." Allie climbed onto the couch and turned into a puppy, sprawling happily against the soft cushion. She fell asleep half a minute into the opening credits.

Sam paused the movie and glanced at the ceiling. "JARVIS, where's Clint or Natasha?" he asked.

"Agent Romanoff is interrogating the intruders," JARVIS said. "Agent Barton is on his way to you."

"Oh. Cool."

Clint came in a minute later, and smiled when he saw the sleeping puppy. "Not tired at all, huh," he said, leaning over to pick up Allie.

She shifted into her regular form and leaned her head against Clint's neck. "Not sweepy," she slurred. "Mobee."

"Tomorrow, baby, I promise."

"Mmkay." Her little fingers twisted in the collar of his pajama shirt, and she sighed sleepily.

Clint kissed her forehead. "Love you, sweetheart." He nodded to Sam. "Thanks, man."

"No problem." Sam turned off the movie and went to see if Steve needed another pair of hands.

Clint took Allie to her room, and tucked her back in bed. He sat on the bed and watched her sleeping face.

"Captain Rogers wishes me to inform you that Dr. Banner has awoken, and you may stay with the little miss," JARVIS said, _sotto voce_.

Clint smiled. "Thanks, J." He took his shoes off, put his bow and quiver down, and laid down next to Allie.

She curled into his side immediately and gave a sleepy mumble.

He smoothed her hair, and thanked whoever was out there that Bucky had decided to side with the Avengers over his former masters.

 **A/N 2: All right, so, NaNoWriMo started today. Either I'll update this a lot because I'm procrastinating on my novel, or I'll actually find my inspiration for the novel and put Puppy Love on the back burner till December. So we'll see. It will not be abandoned either way, this I vow! :D**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Finally an update! I survived NaNoWriMo yay, and here's the next chapter! mostly filler, lots of fluff.**

An hour later the HYDRA agents were gone and the Avengers were re-assembled in the conference room. Allie was sleeping securely in Clint's arms. "So, what do we do?" Bruce asked, still groggy. "The Tower isn't safe anymore and they know Bucky's not with HYDRA anymore."

"We'll have to go off the grid," Steve determined. He looked at Natasha.

She nodded. "I have a place we can go."

"Off the books?" Coulson asked, glancing at his phone. "We've just been blacklisted by SHIELD."

Tony's jaw dropped. "What?"

Coulson held up the tablet. "We've been declared traitors to American interests."

"Even Cap?" Clint asked.

"Yes, sadly."

Natasha nodded. "I've got a place we can go."

Within an hour, they'd evacuated the tower. Natasha woke Allie up and told her to pick five toys, and her favorite clothes. Allie picked Bucky bear, the stuffed duck, her robot dog, the plush alligator, her game tablet, and the only thing she picked clothing-wise was Clint's hoodie and her green Hulk beanie. Everything else she left to her mom to pack.

Allie twisted around in her car seat to watch the tower as they sped away. "We goin' on vacation?" she asked drowsily.

"Yeah," Clint said, sharing a glance with Natasha.

"Mm. Everybody coming?"

"Yep. Just they're in different cars, so we won't be all squished together," Natasha said, playfully squishing Allie close to her.

Allie giggled sleepily. "Is Sam comin' too?"

"Yep." He'd insisted on coming to take care of Barnes and Rogers.

"And Jane'n'Darcy?"

"Them too." Neither of the civilians had wanted to go, but they had to admit that SHIELD would hold them against their will to smoke out Thor and the Avengers. So, they were coming, too.

Allie smiled. "Good. Me'n'Jane's gonna make const'l'ations." She leaned into her mom's side. "We almost there?"

"Not yet baby. It's a long drive." Natasha kissed her hair. "Go back to sleep, sweetheart."

"Mkay mommy." Allie closed her eyes, humming to herself under her breath.

Clint put on the classical station on the radio, and Allie fell asleep within the next movement of the song.

She slept through three car-switches, two bathroom slash check-and-make-sure-no-one-is-following-us breaks, and when she woke up, she was being lifted from her car seat by Bruce. "Bwuce?" she asked, yawning. "We here?"

"We're here," he said, kissing her hair. "You wanna go back to sleep?"

"Nah." She rested her head on his shoulder and gazed at their surroundings. They were in the forest, going to a pretty cabin. There were three cars in the driveway, and mommy and daddy and Steve and Tony were talking and pointing. Everyone else was taking bags into the house. "Bweakfast?" she asked, spotting a bag of chips Sam was carrying.

"In a minute, sweetheart, we've gotta do some things first."

"Kay."

Allie sat calmly on the sofa with her Bucky Bear, watching the adults bustle back and forth. Darcy came and sat with her, and they played I Spy until the smell of pancakes interrupted them.

"Breakfast," Bruce said cheerfully, nodding to Darcy and Allie.

Allie got to sit on the counter and eat her pancakes, and Darcy and Bruce stood at the counter to eat. Everyone else was still busy. "What are they doing?" Allie asked, watching Tony walk past the window with a load of fiber coil over his shoulder.

"Setting up an alarm system," Bruce said.

"Like JARBIS?"

"Something like that."

"Cool."

By the end of the day, the security systems were up and everyone had retreated to the cabin. Fury was sending updates to Coulson over secure, untraceable lines, and Coulson's worry wrinkles were deepening with every update.

Allie crawled into his lap as a kitten and began to purr loudly and insistently until he started to pet her. She settled in his lap with her head over his heart, and tugged at his collar button with a tiny paw until he relaxed. Then she jumped off his lap, still purring, and went to nap next to the heater vent.

"Thank you, Allie," Coulson said.

She let out a 'meow', and washed her paw delicately.

Steve came to find her a few minutes later. "Hey sweetheart," he said gently. He held out a hand. "Do you want to come hang out with Bucky for a while? I think he needs some hugs."

Allie jumped into his hands and rubbed her face against his shirt pocket in agreement.

"All right. Thanks, doll." He carried her into the back room, where Bucky and Sam were sitting in quiet contemplation of the forest, out the window.

Allie jumped gracefully from Steve's grip and shifted into a puppy as soon as she hit the floor. She trotted over to Bucky's side and tugged at his pant leg with her teeth.

He looked own at her, and smiled. "Hey, Allie."

She jumped onto his lap and put her paws on his chest. "Woof?" she asked, bopping his cheek with her cold nose.

He hugged her gently and fondled a tiny ear. "I'm okay, doll, I promise."

She curled up in his lap and wagged her tail for a while, her big intelligent eyes watching him carefully. After a while she shifted into her human form and wrapped her arms around Bucky's neck. "Tell me a story," she requested.

Bucky shifted uneasily. "I'm not good at stories. Don't you want Sam to tell you a story?"

"Nope."

"How about Steve? Steve's great at stories."

"Nope."

He sighed. "What do you want the story about?"

She gazed out the window. "A squirrel," she decided. "A squirrel and his family. And there has to be an owl in it."

Bucky sighed. "Okay. A squirrel and an owl."

"And the family," Allie prompted.

He ran his fingers through his hair with his metal hand. "Okay. Once upon a time-"

"You don't need that part," Allie interrupted.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Once upon a time," he repeated, making her giggle, "there was a squirrel named... named Crispin."

"Crispin is a good name," Allie said, nodding.

"And his family," Bucky said. "His family was very small, and Crispin only had a brother named..."

"Max," Allie prompted.

"Max." Bucky sighed. "So, one day Crispin and Max were on an adventure in the forest. They were on a mission to look for the greatest acorn in existence. It was the size of a... the size of a skyscraper."

"Whoa," Allie said, eyes widening. "How did it fit in the forest?"

Bucky frowned. "The forest was very tall."

"Oh. Okay." She smiled up at him. "Keep going."

"Okay. So, they were looking for the acorn the size of a skyscraper, and as they ran through the forest on the trees, they encountered, uh, an owl."

"What was the owl's name?"

"Uh... Fred?"

"Nah."

"Oswald."

"No. It has to be a girl owl."

"Oswin?"

"Yeah."

"A girl owl named Oswin," Bucky continued. "She was a very wise owl that knew everything about everything in the forest."

Sam grinned as Bucky and Allie continued to weave their story based on the forest and the squirrels. It was the perfect way to distract Bucky from his melancholia. And judging from the twinkle in Allie's eye, she knew exactly what she was doing. Sam got up and went to the bathroom. He found Natasha hovering outside the door, grinning. "Your kid's going to be a great profiler," he said. "Or a great spy."

Natasha grinned. "That's my baby girl."

A~A~A~A

That first night in the cabin, the only ones that slept were Jane, Darcy, Sam, and Allie. Everyone else was busy hacking into SHIELD. Allie slept with Jane and Darcy in their room, and her and Darcy stayed up late painting their nails bright blue. When they finally passed out, Jane got up to cover them both with blankets and tuck Allie into the bed.

The next day, the entire day was spent playing shapeshifting and tablet games inside with Darcy and Jane while everyone was busy hacking SHIELD and trying to figure out who exactly was HYDRA and who was not. They were also trying to figure out strategies to go up against HYDRA bases without giving away who they were and how many of them there were.

Sleeping arrangements that night were cramped, with everyone actually sleeping. Clint, Natasha, and Allie got the main bedroom, Darcy and Jane moved to the other room, and everyone else sprawled out on the couches and bedrolls Natasha pulled out of a closet.

Allie was snug as a bug in a rug, cuddled between her parents, nice and warm and toasty. "Daddy?" she whispered.

"What baby?" he asked, reaching out to smooth her hair.

"Are we camping?" she asked innocently.

"Kind of."

"Can we leab the cabin?"

"Yes, maybe. Why?"

"Tomowwow can we go fish?"

He smiled slightly. "Yeah, we can go fishing."

"Yay, tank you daddy." She inched closer to him and kissed his cheek. "Now sleep, cuz you tink too loud," she whispered.

He chuckled. "Okay, okay, I'll go to sleep."

This established, Allie was out like a light.

"You hate fishing," Natasha whispered into the dark, smirking.

"I know that," Clint replied, "but Allie wants to go, so."

She grinned and reached over Allie to stroke his face. "Softie."

A~A~A~A

The next morning Allie was up early. She woke up as a kitten and decided to stay like that since it was cold. She ventured out of the room to see who was up.

Coulson was the only one who was awake. He was holding a cup of coffee and looking out the window in the kitchen.

Allie carefully sidestepped all the sleeping superheroes and padded up to Coulson. She placed her paws on the leg of his sweatpants and looked up.

He looked down and smiled. "Hey, good morning," he whispered.

She tugged at his leg.

He bent down to pick her up and while he was opening his sweatshirt to tuck her inside, she managed to get a sip of his coffee. "Hey!" he whispered mock-indignantly.

She licked his fingers consolingly and climbed up to sit on his shoulder. She contemplated the window, the woods, the squirrels, and the birds, and tried to get another sip of coffee.

"You are not becoming a coffee addict until you're at least twenty years old," Coulson scolded, moving the coffee to his other hand.

She gave him a big pair of eyes.

"No way," he said firmly. "How about some juice?"

"Mreow." She jumped from his shoulder and turned into a girl. "Apple juice please?" she asked.

"Okay, here we go. No more trying to drink coffee, okay? It's not good for you."

"Kay Cou-son."

"Speaking of coffee, is there?" Tony stumbled into the kitchen, looking haggard.

"Tony!" Allie hugged his legs. "Morning."

"Morning, sweetheart." He ruffled her hair.

Coulson handed him a cup of coffee and a bagel.

"Thanks, Agent." Tony took his breakfast to the sofa. Allie followed him, and took nibbles off the edge of the bagel while Tony gulped his coffee down. "Hey," Tony said, barely realizing it when the coffee cleared his sleep haze. "Wasn't this a full bagel a minute ago?"

She giggled.

Tony took a bite of his bagel. "Tha's nof coo," he told her, mouth full of bagel.

"Ewwww Tony," she giggled, burying her head in the pillow of the couch.

He pulled her out of the couch and tickled her. "Blaarhgh," he said, chewing loudly.

She shrieked happily and pushed at him ineffectually. "Ewww. Steeb help!"

The others on the floor were woken by this heartening scene, and Steve laughingly pulled Allie to safety, and perched her on his shoulders.

She ruffled his sleep-mussed hair and stayed on his shoulders as everyone prepped for the day and made breakfast, and didn't move until Natasha took her to get dressed and braid her hair.

"We're goooinnng fiiiisshiinng," Allie sang as she skipped back into the front room. She hung on Clint's waist. "When we leaving for fishies daddy?"

Tony snorted. "You're taking her fishing? You don't even like-" He was cut off by a swift elbow in the gut from Bucky. "Cherries?" he finished uncertainly, rubbing his chest. "Ow. Make sure you don't take cherries with you when you go fishing."

"Smooth," Sam muttered.

Clint smirked. "Thanks Tony, I'll keep that in mind."

"Who else is going?" Steve asked, in a Cap sort of tone.

"Whoever wants to come," Clint said, after a glance at Natasha.

It ended up being Clint, Natasha, Allie, Steve, and Bruce. Bruce found a nice shady spot under a tree, and closed his eyes to contemplate bird sounds. Clint got Allie set up with a stick and a line, and as he was trying to get the hook on, Allie tugged on his arm.

"Wait, wait, whatsat for?"

"For the fish, baby."

Her eyes widened. "But that will hurt it!"

Natasha spoke up. "What do you think is fishing, sweetie?"

Allie stuck her feet in the stream and wiggled her toes, and splashed her hand in the water. "Fishing is when you sit and feed the fishies and talk 'bout things and den have lunch. Dat's what de wormies are for, right?"

All four adults shared a glance and a smile. "That's exactly right," Clint said, putting everything away and taking off his shoes.

Steve handed Allie a worm. "Here you go."

They spent a couple of hours looking for fish, and Allie had a staring contest with a small trout before it headed back downstream. She flew back to the cabin as a bluebird, and beat the grownups there. She flew into the open door, and perched nimbly on Bucky's shoulder with a chirp.

Bucky smiled. "Hey, birdie. How was fishing?"

She cheeped happily and fluffed her feathers before flitting away to chirp at Darcy and Sam.

Tony spoke up. "Hey, I think I found something."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Next chapter!**

"Project Insight," Coulson said with a sigh, after talking to Fury. "Scheduled to go online in three weeks."

"What is it?" Clint asked.

"Three heavily armed, satellite-linked Helicarriers designed to proactively strike out against potential threats before they actually happen. Fury says that at least 219,571 people are targeted, including every single one of us. The targets were chosen using an algorithm designed by Arnim Zola to identify anyone who could be a threat to HYDRA, using the personal information available online and extrapolating their future activities." Coulson looked furious. "Just to give you an idea of their thoroughness, Allie is number 452 on that list, for being a shapeshifter and daughter of two Avengers, even though she hasn't even shown any interest in crime fighting or government work."

Everyone reacted wrathfully, and Black Widow spoke up next. "How do we take them down?"

Coulson explained what Fury knew about them. "And we'll have to make a plan on our own."

An alert began beeping.

Tony accessed it, and went pale behind his goatee. "We've got incoming," he barked. "They must have a trace on Fury or the information he accessed. We need to go."

The Avengers exploded into action. Tony, Jane, and Bruce started packing up the tech, Clint grabbed Allie and all their things, and the rest of the team cleaned up the cabin and gathered supplies. They were out of there before the HYDRA/SHIELD forces even breached the perimeter.

Thor then individually carried them out of the danger zone and dropped them off in the middle of nowhere. Allie rode as a snake, curled into the pocket of Bruce's sweater, since his body temperature was higher than anyone else's due to the Hulk, and he could protect her the best if they were caught.

They weren't caught, and soon they were all gathered in the middle of nowhere, in an old abandoned grain silo that would probably collapse if Thor sneezed. "We need another safe house to work from," Steve said.

"Thank you Captain Obvious," Tony retorted.

"Stark," Coulson said sharply.

"Hey, I've only had three cups of coffee today, so excuse me if I'm a bit testy."

Clint and Natasha were having a silent eyebrow conversation. Finally Clint sighed and nodded. "Okay, I have a place we can go. If any of you tell anyone else about this place, no one will ever find your bodies, understood?" This threat was not diminished by the fact that a tiny blue bird was sitting on his head.

Everyone nodded.

"Good. Now we need transportation."

Natasha and Steve went to steal a couple cars, "Where did you learn to hotwire cars?" "Nazi Germany," and picked up the group of superheroes. Allie insisted on riding with Bucky.

Divided into two cars, they made the trip to even further than the middle of nowhere by dinner time. Allie by this point had turned into a baby sloth out of sheer frustration and gone to sleep in Clint's hood. Since sloths slept most of a twenty-four hour day, she didn't wake up until they were pulling up to a large farmhouse with a barn in the back.

Clint got out of the car fist, and gently tugged Allie the sloth out of his hood. "Okay sweetie, time to wake up."

She turned into a girl, and stumbled sleepily against his legs. "Tired," she mumbled.

"Don't you want to make some friends?" Clint asked. "There might be cookies."

She perked up, and rubbed at her eyes. "I'm awake," she announced.

He took her hand and swung it between them as they walked up to the front door, the others falling in line behind him. "Okay," he said, before opening the door, "nobody freak out."

"You a secret hoarder or something?" Tony asked.

Clint ignored him and opened the door. "Laura? You guys in?" He led Allie and the Avengers into the living room.

A woman around Clint's age walked into the room from the kitchen, a basket of laundry on her hip. "Clint?" she exclaimed happily, and grabbed him in a hug.

He hugged her and kissed her cheek. "Hey Laura."

Laura turned to Natasha next and the two women hugged.

"Okay, not a bigamist then," Tony said quietly.

Coulson gave him a disapproving Look before stepping forward to give his own hug. "Mrs. Barton, good to see you again."

"You too, Agent Coulson."

Everyone's eyes went wide at this interaction. "Wait, I think I missed something," Tony said loudly. "Whose house are we in?"

Clint turned to face them. "You guys remember that time I told you about my brother?"

"The mercenary one?"

"That's the one. Laura is his wife. I hid her and the kids from anyone who might hold a grudge against Barney. The only ones who knew were Fury, Coulson, and Tasha."

"Wait, kids?" Darcy asked.

Two small blurs raced into the living room and collided against the two spies. "Uncle Clint! Auntie Nat!" the boy and girl clamored, respectively, until they got their hugs and hair ruffles.

"Guys, this is Laura, Lila, and Cooper," Clint said. "You all know who these guys are, and that's Bucky, Sam, Jane, and Darcy." He knelt and held a hand out to Allie who was hiding behind Thor's leg. "Come say hi to your cousins, baby."

Allie shuffled to his side and faced the other half of the Barton clan with wide eyes. "Hi," she whispered.

Laura smiled at her. "It's very nice to meet you Allie."

Lila bounced in place. "Hi! I'm six."

"I'm five."

"I'm eight," Cooper added.

Lila took Allie's hand gently. "You want to see my room? I have toys!"

Allie looked at her parents.

"You can go play," Natasha said, nodding.

Allie was ushered away upstairs by the two kids.

"Sorry to drop in on you like this, Laur, but it was an emergency," Clint said.

She waved a hand. "It's fine, really." She sobered. "I saw the news. Didn't tell the kids."

"Good. They don't need that on their minds." Clint faced the Avengers again. "So, we can set up the tech center in the barn and get everyone set up upstairs. It'll be cramped, sorry, but we'll fit."

"Sorry to inconvenience you," said ever-polite Steve.

"It's fine," Laura said cheerfully. "Good thing I just went food shopping." She touched Natasha on the arm. "Nat, can you get the spare bedrooms? I'm gonna move the kids in with me."

"Sure."

Everyone dispersed to put things away and figure out the tech center for the barn. Clint and Thor started raiding the kitchen for dinner supplies, and Sam and Bucky started pulling out the security measures.

Natasha went upstairs to scope out the rooms and what needed doing, and came upon the three kids playing trains in the playroom.

"Mommy look!" Allie ran over to her and held up the train. "We should get twains when we go home again. They're so much fun, and you can build your own twacks."

Natasha smiled and smoothed her hair. "Sure baby." She knelt and whispered in her ear, "have you shown them your special power?"

Allie shook her head. "No, don't wanna."

"Why not?"

"I don't know them," Allie whispered back, her little brow furrowed.

"They know how to keep a secret, it's okay."

Allie shook her head uncertainly.

"Okay baby, whenever you feel like telling them, it's okay."

"Mkay." Allie pressed a kiss to Natasha's cheek and returned to the train set with Lila.

Cooper came over to Natasha. "She's really shy, huh?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah she is, Coop."

He nodded, determined. "She's our cousin now, i'll take care of her."

Natasha ruffled his hair fondly. "Thank you Cooper."

He gave her a smile and returned to his trains.

A~A~A~A

Clint, Thor, and Sam managed to managed to make enough dinner to feed everyone, and they all gathered to eat. Steve had to drag a reluctant Tony out of the barn to get him to eat something.

Dinner was awkward, since no one wanted to mention anything classified. So they let Cooper and Lila chatter about their school, and their projects and their chickens. Allie chimed in with questions about chickens, and as soon as they finished eating they made a beeline for the barn. Thor went with them to keep an eye on them, and to keep them away from Tony and Bruce's equipment.

The rest of the evening they stayed and played in the barn, and Clint finally came to grab the kids for bed. He scooped Allie off the ground and covered her face in scratchy kisses. "Bedtime," he announced, as Allie giggled into his shoulder.

"Aww, Uncle Clin," Cooper whined.

"Nope, bed time. Your mom said so."

"Aw." They raced out of the barn to the house and Clint trudged back to the house, Allie on his hip. "Did you have fun baby?" Clint asked.

"Yeah. They're weally nice. They have kitties in the barn loft and dat's what we were play wif. Dere's a weally pwetty one dat's got patches and I think I might be it later."

"That's cool." He kissed her hair. "Ready for bed?"

"Nah." She wriggled down from his hold and ran into the house.

He found her comfortably seated in Bucky's metal arm as he and Steve discussed the merits of telling the president the entire situation. "Hi daddy," Allie said sweetly, her arms around Bucky's neck.

"Hi Allie. Bedtime."

"No tank you." She turned into a snake and slithered into Bucky's sleeve.

The two supersoldiers grinned.

Clint grinned too, but he didn't let it show in his voice as he said, "C'mon Allie. You gotta take a bath, and mommy's going to read you a new story. Isn't that exciting?"

A tiny snake head poked out of Bucky's sleeve, and a tiny tongue flickered.

"Peekaboo," Clint said, giving her a grin.

She slithered out of the sleeve and into Clint's hand, twining around his fingers. She stayed like that as he carried her upstairs, and turned into a girl to get in the bath.

Allie had an excellent bath, and then was tucked into bed with her Bucky bear. Natasha read her a story from Lila's collection, and sang her to sleep. Allie sighed in complete contentment and turned into a puppy, burying her little nose in her pillow.

Natasha smiled softly and left her to sleep. She joined the others downstairs. Laura took one look at the set of their faces and hastily excused herself goodnight.

"So," Tony said, "we've been looking at the specs for the helicarriers, and we think we've got a plan to take them down."

"I'm sensing a but," Steve said.

"Sensing the butt, you're adjusting to the twenty-first century," Tony said approvingly.

"Stark."

"Sorry, that was just too good an opportunity. However, yes, there is a but."

Bruce spoke up. "We don't have access to the technology to make the chips that would stop the helicarriers from being able to target anyone on the kill lists. So, we need to find a place where we won't be found by SHIELD and we can manufacture the chips, and then from there we can go to the three helicarriers and implant the chips, and make them self-destruct before they even manage to launch them."

Steve nodded slowly, his mind whirring with strategies. "Does anyone have any ideas of where we can go?"

Coulson, of all people, shrugged.

Tony half-raised a hand. "I think I know a place, but we need a quin-jet with stealth technology."

"Then we need something a little less obvious than your suit to hijack a quin-jet," Clint retorted.

"I can reach the helicarrier, but I will need someone for technical support," Thor volunteered.

Sam cleared his throat with a slight cough. "Ahem. I think I might be able to help with that."

Coulson smirked. "Are you finally going to tell them about your wings, Sam?"

Sam's jaw dropped. "You knew!"

"Of course I knew."

"What's going on?" Steve demanded.

Sam explained how he had been an EXO-7 jetpack operator. "The only one left is at Fort Meade, behind three guarded gates and a twelve-inch steel wall."

Steve looked at Natasha. She shrugged. "Won't be a problem," Steve said firmly.

"Twelve-inch steel wall," Clint sniggered. "Ah, Budapest."

Natasha punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow, hey!" Clint quickly hid behind Bruce. "Can't hit Bruce!" he reminded her.

Natasha narrowed her eyes at him. "Mention Budapest again and the Hulk will be the least of your problems."

"Yes ma'am," Clint said, still hiding behind their teammate.

Steve, Natasha, Clint, and Sam headed off to Fort Meade. The rest of the team was to lay low and guard the civilians.

Before they left, Clint went upstairs and kissed Allie's hair gently. "Allie, sweetheart, wake up."

"Daddy?" she asked drowsily, blinking up at him. "Wh's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing baby." He cuddled her close. "It's just, Steve, mommy, Sam, and I are going on a mission. We'll be back soon, okay?"

"Mkay. Stay safe, kay?"

"We will. I love you baby."

"Wuv you," she murmured, still mostly asleep as she hugged him.

He tucked her back into bed, and went back downstairs.

"Ready?" Steve asked.

"Ready, Cap."

A~A~A~A


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Finally, the end of the Winter Soldier arc. Whew.**

When Allie woke up the next morning, she found Darcy and Jane in the room with her. She panicked for a moment, trying to find her parents, and then remembered Clint's quiet goodbye. She curled back under the blankets and nuzzled her cheek into the curve of Darcy's shoulder.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Darcy said, yawning.

"Mmh. Jane?"

"Still asleep." Darcy reached out a toe and nudged Jane in the thigh. "Yep, still asleep."

Allie let out a sleepy giggle. "Is it early?" she whispered.

"Well, it's seven thirty. Is that early or late for you?"

Allie shrugged and slid out of bed. "Early. But I'm hungwy."

"Okay. I think Thor's downstairs, and Bruce. I heard them talking."

"Yeah." Allie changed into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and crept downstairs.

Thor, Bruce, Coulson, and Laura were sitting at the table having coffee and muffins. "Hey, good morning, Allie," Laura said, spotting the little girl.

Allie smiled shyly and yawned. "G'morning." She shuffled over to Thor and leaned against his leg. "Hair?" she asked, holding up a pink hair tie.

He smiled and took the tie. "As you wish." He did a quick braid and secured the end, and pulled her up to sit on his knee. "Would you like some muffin?"

"Yeah."

"Nice braid," Laura said, raising an eyebrow.

Coulson grinned. "We've all gotten pretty good at hairstyles for little girls, huh, Allie?"

"Yeah," Allie said, swallowing a bite of muffin. "Steeb and mommy and Darcy are de best, but everyone's good at it, and Dummy can make my hair curly."

"How does he do that?" Bruce asked, frowning.

"He sticks his finger in de coil and heats it up, and den wraps my hair like mommy's curler stick. Comes out all nice and bouncy," Allie replied placidly. "Can I have juice, please?"

Bruce's eyes were wide. "The _thermo-nuclear coil_?"

"I'n'know. Tony let him."

Bruce sighed. "Of course he would."

Coulson patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Would you like to borrow my taser?"

"No thanks."

Allie sat with Thor and had breakfast, and when Cooper and Lila woke up they all went off to play.

"Has Clint told you about Allie's, gift?" Coulson asked, as they watched the kids run around outside.

Laura smiled. "Yes he did. He told me about Allie when he decided that he wanted to adopt her. And he's so good with Cooper and Lila."

"He's an amazing father," Bruce said.

Laura's smile gentled and she got up to get more coffee. "Anyone want more?"

A~A~A~A

Their mission to Fort Meade only took a day and a half, and then they were back. "Mom mom mom dad dad dad!" Allie screeched, rushing to hug Hawkeye and Black Widow.

They scooped her up. "Allie Allie Allie," Clint repeated, blowing a raspberry on her neck.

She shrieked happily, and wriggled out of his arms, running to her mother. The guns strapped to her thigh didn't even register. "Mommy."

Natasha kneeled down and held her close. "Hi. Did you miss me?"

"Yes," Allie said firmly.

"Good."

Sam showed off his wings, and did some aerial tricks for everyone's entertainment.

Coulson suddenly came out from the house, waving his phone. "Got it! We've got the coordinates!"

"Huh, Fury actually came through," Tony said, surprised.

Steve slung his shield onto the couch. "All right, everybody, let's pack up."

Darcy half-raised a hand. "Where are we going?"

Tony grinned wryly. "Someplace my dad talked about once, but never made it onto the official books."

"Agent Carter was the one who ran the place for a while," Coulson added. "Only Fury knows the coordinates, as director of SHIELD, so we should be safe there, and we'll have access to technology."

They were ready to go by the evening, and Natasha went to the barn to get Allie. "Sweetheart, it's time to go," she called.

Allie startled, and tumbled backwards off the hay loft.

Lila screamed, Cooper shouted, and Natasha's heart jumped into her mouth.

Allie transformed into a bird four feet from the ground, and fluttered frantically into Natasha's outstretched hands. Natasha held her close as she transformed back into a girl and pressed her lips to Allie's hair. "Oh my baby, are you all right?" Natasha asked, trying to control the hammering in her heart.

"I'm fine mommy," Allie said shakily.

Cooper and Lila were still staring over the edge of the loft. "Whoa," Cooper said slowly. "That's awesome."

"Are you a superhero too?" Lila asked eagerly, as the two of them clambered down the ladder and hugged their little cousin.

"No, I'm just me," Allie said shyly.

Lila hugged her tightly. "You're _awesome_."

Natasha gently reminded them that they had to leave, and Lila begged for another demonstration of Allie's talents before she left.

Allie quickly turned into a cat, a dragon, a puppy, and a platypus before returning back to her regular form. "Ta-da," she said shyly.

"Awesome," Cooper breathed. "You have to come back and visit us really soon."

"We'll come back soon," Natasha promised, scooping Allie off the ground and leading the children back towards the house.

"Bye!"

Allie ran into the quinjet and sat next to Steve. She turned into a grey kitten with white paws, and curled up in Steve's lap, tugging idly at a loose string in his sleeve.

He smiled and kept her entertained during the flight, but before they all knew it, the shielded quinjet landed at the secret base known as The Playground.

The scientists all made their way to the labs, and the others made their way to the strategy rooms. Allie went with Jane and Darcy to the mess hall. The caretaker of the place was a kind, mysterious man, and he offered to put on a Disney movie for the little girl. "Mulan!" she said. "Please."

A~A~A~A

With the proper materials, Tony and Bruce had the chips ready to go within fourteen hours.

A half hour after that, everyone was suited up and ready to go. Steve and Bucky were going to tackle the primary helicarrier. Natasha and Clint were going to tackle the second one. Sam and Thor were going to take down the third one. Tony, Bruce, and Coulson were going to take over the actual satellites that Project Insight used, and broadcast the identities of all the HYDRA operatives.

Allie was left with Darcy and the scientists to be absolutely safe. She gave everyone a hug goodbye and admonished them all to be safe. "Stay safe," she told Bucky again, her hands on his cheeks. "Don't be bad spy no more."

"I won't," he promised. "Don't worry doll. My mission is to help Steve."

"Good," Allie said firmly, and kissed his nose.

Once everyone was gone, Allie crawled unceremoniously into Darcy's lap and cuddled into her side. "Everyone's gonna be okay, right Darcy?"

Darcy kissed Allie's head. "Everyone's gonna be okay," she promised, and silently prayed, 'please universe, don't make me a liar.'

Three hours later, all the television channels were broadcasting breaking news: Avengers unmask HYDRA plot to destroy the world. Politician after politician was unmasked as part of HYDRA's organization, and all of its members were cast into the light. Alexander Pierce was forcibly removed from the World Security Council, and had a mysterious "accident" on his way to federal custody.

Captain America inspired loyal SHIELD agents to rise against HYDRA operatives, and all over the world, there was battle for control of bases and resources. The three Project Insight Helicarriers would not even be rising from their berths beneath the Potomac.

The more information was dumped on the internet of HYDRA's dealings, the more people began to realize just how serious it was. Trials began immediately. SHIELD was taken apart and revamped by the UN. The Avengers were cleared of the traitor charges. Fury came out clean from the investigation and got straight back to work with the cleared SHIELD agents, rounding up HYDRA agents, and directing the Avengers to certain strongholds.

One day turned into two, and two days turned into a week, two weeks. Tony screened everyone in his tower and cleaned out all the HYDRA agents, and moved Pepper, Bruce, Allie, Jane, and Darcy back in with him. Allie was overjoyed to have her toys, her clothes, and her JARBIS back, and the first thing she did was take a nap with the bots.

A few days later, Tony could no longer keep a handle on the information being released about HYDRA, and the details about the Winter Soldier made their way onto the internets. He was arrested by UN forces only two hours later, much to Captain America's disapproval.

The trial for the crimes of the Winter Soldier was the largest to-do anyone had ever seen. Experts were called in, genetic testing was done, Captain America testified, Natasha Romanoff testified, HYDRA agents were made to confess their knowledge of the Winter Soldier.

Allie wasn't allowed to watch TV or access the internet, and every time she talked to her mom or dad over the phone, they only told her that everyone was fine and that they would be home soon.

Two months later, James Buchanan Barnes was acquitted of the crimes committed by the Winter Soldier, since there was clear and present proof that he had been brainwashed. His actions in taking HYDRA down helped his case, too. He was released into the custody of the Avengers, to continue saving the world.

A month after that, everyone finally returned home. Allie worked herself into hysterics welcoming everyone back, and burst into happy tears when she saw Bucky. "I thought you were going to be in jail foreeeevvveerrrr," she sobbed, throwing her arms around him.

Everyone exchanged a startled glance. "How did you know I was in jail, sweetheart?" Bucky asked gently.

Her words were muffled into his shoulder. "Because it was on the news and I was a kitty so Pep didn't see me and I watched de news and you were on it and Steeb was on it, and you killed Howid and Tony's mom when you were bad-spy, and then it made me sad so I left, but you were in jail and no one would say anything and Tony wouldn't talk 'bout it so I thought you were goin' be in jail forevers."

Bucky's grip on her tightened at her words. "You saw that, huh?" he asked. Recalling what had happened in 1991 had nearly killed him. Tony still hadn't been able to look at him since he came to escort Bucky and Steve away from the courthouse.

A half-hearted sniffle.

Tony spoke up from where he was hovering at the outskirts. "It's okay Allie," he said, coming forward to smooth a hand down her back. "I'm not mad. I mean, I'm mad, I'm furious, that I lost my parents because of HYDRA, but, it wasn't his fault, not really."

Bucky looked at him uncertainly.

Tony rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the ground. "I saw the, uh, video, of you remembering what happened. It wasn't pretty."

"I am sorry," Bucky said earnestly.

"Yeah. Let's just, not mention it again, okay?"

A silent nod.

Allie detached herself from Bucky's neck and leaned over to Tony. "You need a hug," she declared, and jumped into his arms, resting a soft cheek against his neck and hugging him tightly.

The billionaire hugged her gently and bowed his head, and no one dared to mention the suspicious sheen in his eyes.

Allie pressed a kiss to Tony's cheek. "Don't be sad too much," she consoled him. "You's got Pepper and me and de whole family."

He gave her a rough smile. "I know sweetheart."

A~A~A~A

After a week of recuperating, Sam made an announcement at team dinner. "I think, I'm going to head home tomorrow."

Thor frowned at him. "That was my line."

"Huh?"

Thor looked at the others. "I must return to Asgard tomorrow," he explained. "I have been away too long, and there is unrest in the other realms. I must fulfill my duties as prince. I'm sorry to leave when there is still so much tumult on this planet, but..."

"We understand," Steve said. "We'll be sorry to see you go."

Allie pouted in Thor's direction and then looked at Sam, a betrayed look in her eyes. "You can't go," she said firmly. "Who's gonna help Bucky and Steeb and Tony and Bwuce wif his night-scares?"

Sam cleared his throat. "Well, I was really only supposed to be here for two weeks, tops, and then all of this happened. I mean, I think I lost my apartment, and I gotta go see if I'm still even working at the VA, and-"

Allie jumped from her chair and ran over to Steve. "Can we keep him?" she asked in a stage-whisper, hanging from his arm. "Can we keep him as a 'venger?"

Steve smiled at her. "I think that's a good idea." He looked at the rest of the table. "What do you guys think?"

"All in favor say aye," Natasha said crisply.

There was a resounding 'aye.'

Steve grinned at Sam. "There you go. Job, apartment, and future, all sorted."

Sam shook his head. "Seriously? You guys want me? All I have is a pair of wings-"

"Which I'm going to make way better, by the way," Tony chimed in.

"You can't say no to that cute little face," Clint said coaxingly, pointing at Allie's devastating puppy-eyes.

Sam sighed. "I mean, it's not like I have anything better to do than save the world."

"That's the spirit," Thor said, slapping him (gently!) on the back. "I trust you to keep the skies clear for them, my friend."

"Sure," Sam said, nodding.

Allie grinned smugly into her macaroni and cheese.

When Thor left, he promised to bring her back a gift.

"No living alien pet things," Natasha told him firmly.

"I promise," Thor said. He walked away from the gathered Avengers, and looked up at the sky. A blinding light swallowed him up a moment later, and he was gone.

"Dat was sooo coool," Allie breathed in amazement. "S'like a transporter..." She spontaneously shifted into a lizard and had to be carried home in Natasha's jacket.

A~A~A~A


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Not dead! Just, insanely busy. And I had a really bad cold. And I've been working on a Pride and Prejudice story. So, without further ado, a nice long chapter!**

"Moooooooommmm, I'm _booooooooorrrreeeeeedddd_ ," Allie whined, collapsing against Natasha's legs and throwing her arms around the redhead's midsection dramatically.

"Go play with Darcy, honey."

"She's on a date," Allie pouted.

"Don't you want to do some learning with JARVIS?"

"I alweady did, 'n I'm boooorreeeed..." Allie heaved a sigh and buried her face in Natasha's stomach.

Natasha smoothed Allie's soft hair and smiled down at her indulgently. "All right, malyshka, what are we going to do?" she asked.

"Can we go back to Cooper and Lila's house?" she asked eagerly.

Natasha shook her head. "School's started. They wouldn't be there to play with most of the day."

Allie sighed. "I'm bored."

"Do you want to go to the pool?"

"Yeah."

"And then afterwards maybe you can convince Tony to help you build another robot. Yeah?"

"I guess."

Allie was distracted for an hour with her mom, and then spent the rest of the day with Tony as he worked on upgrades to Falcon's sit and everyone's gear, and she built a holographic tower, decorating and organizing each floor as she saw fit.

At bedtime, Allie asked, "What are we going to do tomorrow?"

Clint kissed her forehead. "I don't know. What do you think we should do?"

"Go visit Cooper and Lila."

"They're in school, honey."

"Oh yeah." Allie pouted into her blankets. "I wanna go to school."

Clint paused. "You do?"

"Yeah." She sighed. "I'm bored, daddy."

He picked her up, blankets and all, and snuggled her in his lap. "Well, we'll just have to fix that, won't we, sweetheart?" He leaned back against the wall, and they read a story together before he tucked her back in. "Goodnight baby."

"Night daddy."

He left the robo-dog keeping watch on Allie's desk, and closed the door behind him as he left. "J, call a team meeting, low priority," he said.

"Yes Agent Barton."

By the time he got to the living room, everyone was already there. Clint raised an eyebrow. "You didn't have to rush," he told them.

"JARVIS said it was about Allie," Bucky said simply.

Clint smiled, touched by his team's devotion to the little girl. "Allie wants to go to school," he declared, sharing a glance with Natasha, who nodded. "Thoughts?"

Everyone started talking at once. "She can't go to public school!-" merged with "There's nowhere that would keep up with her-" merged with "It's not safe-" and a half a dozen other statements.

Natasha cleared her throat sharply.

Everyone shut up.

"Thank you," she said dangerously. "I think we've all seen that Allie is definitely ready for an advanced curriculum, and she needs friends her own age. We didn't ask for objections. We asked how to make it happen."

Everyone was silent for a while longer, and then Tony started to pace, muttering to himself and waving his hands in front of him, conjuring up holograms.

"What are you thinking, Tony?" Steve asked.

"Hm..."

"Tony."

"I've got it," Tony announced, grinning. "I thought of it a while ago but I forgot once I fell asleep, but I've got it again. I'm going to start a school for SI employees. It will be a charter school, so they can do it online, and the curriculum will be adjusted for each kid's needs, but I'll find a couple good teachers and we'll set up a classroom on one of the floors full of offices. We can renovate it to include a gym, a lunchroom or something, an auditorium for talent nights, and... JARVIS, I want a list of codes and security features for having a school."

"Yes sir," JARVIS said, sounding pleased.

"Tony are you serious?" Bruce asked.

"Absolutely."

"You're going to start a school, just so Allie doesn't have to leave the tower?" Clint asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes."

"Overprotective, much?" Pepper asked, hiding a smile.

"Nope," Tony said, clapping his hands together. "I want all kids to be safe. And besides, where else would they have the protection of the best superheroes in the world?"

Natasha kissed his cheek. "You're a good man, Tony Stark."

He blushed under her honest praise and shrugged it off. "Nah, I just don't want her going to public school. She's too good for that." He left quickly, with Pepper in tow, as they started talking about the school.

Steve grinned after them, and turned to Clint and Natasha. "In the meantime, I can spend more time with Allie learning and reading if you want," he said. "I don't want her to be bored."

Clint nodded. "That would be great, Steve."

"I can teach her a new language," Bucky offered quietly. "Or work with her on learning Russian more fluently."

Bruce offered to start teaching her more than basic chemistry when he wasn't working. "And I promise we won't blow anything up too much," he said, eyes twinkling.

Natasha smirked. "I'm going to hold you to that, Bruce."

A~A~A~A

The school took another three months to get started, but like all of SI's endeavors, it was a success. Forty SI children were enrolled immediately, and split into four groups of ten, with one teacher/mentor to watch over them. Attendance was optional since all work could be done online, but with added daycare options, and the fact that Tony Stark had personally built the game room for the kids, all forty children were adamant on attending their new school.

SI Daycare services were from seven in the morning to eight in the evening. The school started at nine and ended at three. Depending on their ages, the kids attending Stark Tower Charter School were there a _lot_ , and already JARVIS was extrapolating their future in STEAM careers (science tech engineering art math). Their curriculum was innovative as well, blending hands-on learning with reading and videos, group-work or not, depending on each child's unique learning styles. The teachers were there to help each kid do their best, and study what interested them, as long as there was a balanced schedule for each day.

Allie was overjoyed with her new environment, and her new friends. Several of the kids were ages ranging four to seven, and they were all bright students. They formed an instant friendship, as kids do, and after a couple weeks, Allie was persuaded to show them her shapeshifting gifts. One of her fellow five-year-olds proposed marriage immediately upon learning that she could turn into a spotted lizard, but was kindly rebuffed.

"We can't get mawwied," Allie told him practically. "You don't got a job and I don't want to move out."

"Okay," the five-year-old said agreeably. His name was Marcos. "Wanna play Mario Kart after school?"

"Yeah."

Allie, Marcos, and another girl named Keisha were staying after school that day until four o'clock. Bucky had promised to pick Allie up after school and take her to the aquarium.

The three children had just started their Mario Kart race when one of the older boys intruded. He was a sullen eleven-year-old, and so far, had shown very little enthusiasm for his new school. "Give me that," he said, plucking the controller out of Keisha's hand. "Babies shouldn't play with the good toys."

"Hey!" Allie protested, jumping out of her beanbag chair and pausing the game. "Give dat back Tyler!"

"Why should I? You're not the boss of me. You're just a baby."

Allie's chin wobbled but she stared up at him defiantly. "Leave us alone or I'll tell the teacher."

"Oh yeah?"

A deadly quiet voice interrupted. "There a problem here?"

All four children swiveled to look at the man in the doorway. "Uncle Bucky!" Allie said, running to his side and pulling on his metal hand.

Bucky raised an eyebrow at Tyler. "Sharing is caring, Tyler," he said evenly.

Tyler shoved the controller back into Keisha's hands. "Yes sir," he said nervously, recognizing that silver hand.

"Good." Bucky waited until Tyler retreated to another game console before turning to scoop up Allie. "Hi munchkin."

"Hi." She kissed his cheek. "Tank you."

"No problem doll." He knelt to smile at the other two. "Hey. I'm Bucky."

"Dis is Marcos and Keisha," Allie said. "We're friends."

Bucky gave them both a charming smile. "Very nice to meet you."

Keisha blushed, and Marcos stared at him in rapt hero worship. "Can I see your arm?" Marcos breathed.

Sam, coming to find Bucky and Allie when they were late for the zoo outing, was amused to see Bucky sitting cross-legged on the floor, his sleeve rolled up, as Marcos and Keisha examined his arm, and Allie leaned into his other side.

"You're a big hit," Sam commented, as they walked away.

"Cuz he's _awesome_ ," Allie affirmed, from her perch on Bucky's shoulders.

A~A~A~A

But, with school, and exposure to forty kids, came the inevitable germs. Two months after school started, Natasha came to wake Allie up.

She knelt by the bed and smoothed Allie's hair. "Time to get up, _malyshka_ ," she said softly.

Allie grumbled something inaudible and huddled under the covers.

Natasha smirked and tugged the covers off. "C'mon, baby, time to wake up."

"I'on't'wann'go'school't'day," Allie mumbled, refusing to open her eyes. "I'do'later."

Natasha tucked her back under the covers. It was a Wednesday, so Steve and Bucky would be in the tower to watch her. "All right, sweetheart, that's fine." She kissed Allie's soft cheek and left her to rest. "Tell the guys they're on babysitting duty, J," she requested.

"Yes Ms. Romanoff."

Steve came to get Allie at ten o'clock. He expected to find her playing in her room, since she hadn't come down for breakfast, but she was still lying in bed, idly petting a stuffed elephant. "Hey, doll," he said quietly, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Feeling hungry yet?"

She shook her head. "No. I don't feel good, Steeb. Not hungry."

Steve frowned, and pressed a gentle hand to her forehead. His eyes widened. "You're feeling pretty bad huh?" he asked, scooping her up and letting her rest against his chest as he walked out.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"Does your tummy hurt?"

"Little bit."

"How about your head?"

"Lots," Allie said, wincing away from the bright light of the hallway.

He kissed her hair. "I'm sorry sweetheart. Anything else hurt?"

"My throat. And my eyeballs. And everywhere." She sighed again, and sniffled. "I want ice cream."

Steve resisted a chuckle. "Okay. But first how about we go see Bruce?"

"Mkay."

Bruce and JARVIS determined that Allie had a bad cold, and JARVIS ordered electrolyte-filled drinks, children's cold medicine, and her favorite ice cream from the nearest store.

Steve coaxed Allie into eating a waffle and drinking some Gatorade, and they sat on the couch to watch Mulan and eat ice cream.

Bucky found them there a few minutes later, having been alerted by JARVIS that Allie was sick. "Hey, sweetheart," he said softly, sitting next to her. "How do you feel?"

"Yucky," she replied, and leaned her forehead onto his metal arm. "Ahhh...cooold."

Steve couldn't help the smirk.

Clint came back to the tower a couple of hours later, and went straight to his daughter. "JARVIS said you were sick," he said, kneeling and kissing her forehead.

Allie sneezed pitifully, and held her arms out to the spysassin. "Hugs," she demanded. "Pease?"

Clint scooped her up, and sat down with her in his lap. "When did you last give her the cold medicine?" he asked Steve, feeling her forehead and frowning.

"Three hours ago."

"Okay." Clint rubbed her back gently. "You want to take a bath maybe?" he asked.

"No." She looked up at him. "Can I take a nap?"

"You can take a nap but I need you to answer one question for me okay?"

"Mkay."

"When was the last time you got sick?" Clint asked.

Allie frowned and rubbed at her flushed cheeks. "I... don't know?" She sat up straight and looked at Clint. "I never _been_ sick, daddy," she said in a bewildered tone. "I don't tink I ever got de cold or de flu, or nothin'."

"Nothing? Ever?" Clint asked in disbelief.

"Nope." She leaned against his chest, and closed her eyes. "M'tired."

Clint stood up, carefully cradling her in his arms. "This can't be normal," he said. "Why is she sick now, when she's in a good environment, with plenty of food and love, but she _never_ got sick, not once, half-starved and neglected when she was little, without any vaccines?"

Steve paled. "You don't think this is just the flu? But Bruce checked. JARVIS checked." He and Bucky followed Clint into the elevators.

"We're going to check again." Clint gave him a grim smile. "My spy senses are tingling."

Bucky tensed. "You think this is a deliberate attack on Allie?"

"I don't know." Clint pulled her closer to his chest.

Bruce ran a blood test, and gave Allie something to lower her fever in the meantime. He checked her mutant cells under the microscope, and frowned. "I think the virus is suppressing her ability to mutate," he said, after some examination. He looked at Allie, who was drowsily leaning against Bucky's chest. "Allie, can you turn into something else, please?"

She concentrated, and then she shivered hard, tears springing to her eyes. "I can't, Bwuce. It hurts."

Bruce frowned. "Okay, Allie. Until you're better I don't want you to try it at all, okay? No shapeshifting."

"Kay." She sighed. "M'tired."

Bucky put an arm around her to keep from tilting over. "Is that all you need?" he asked.

Bruce nodded. "I'm going to confer with Hank about the virus-"

"Pym?" Clint asked sharply.

"No, the other Hank."

"Oh."

"And see what he knows. In the meantime..." Bruce attached a bio monitor to Allie's wrist. "This will let me monitor her. Keep her calm, hydrated and let her sleep as much as possible." He frowned sympathetically. "Even if it's the regular flu she's in for a few rough days."

Steve stayed to confer with Bruce about Hank McCoy's whereabouts, and Clint and Bucky returned to the living quarters.

Clint tucked Allie back into bed with a tablet to watch a movie. "Can you keep an eye on her?" he asked. "I need to update Nat and cancel our missions."

"Yeah." Bucky laid a cool hand over Allie's warm forehead. "We'll be here."

Allie's fever diminished slightly with medicine, but she was still hot, weak, and miserable, dozing in and out of sleep, crying for comfort. Popsicles and cool cloths soothed her throat and her skin, and cuddled from her family soothed her soul.

A lukewarm bath sent her to sleep, but she refused to be set down in her bed, the sheets making her sensitive skin ache. So for the foreseeable future, Clint had a five-year-old weight in his arms.

"Good thing you didn't skip arm day," Tony said lightly, walking into the kitchen. His mocking tone was at odds with his tender expression as he looked at Allie. "Can I hold her?" he asked after a second. "When you get tired, obviously. Don't want your bow arm to get cramped up.'

Clint gently shifted her to Tony's hold. "Thanks man. I'll be back in a few."

"Yeah. Take your time, we're good."

"Tony?" Allie mumbled, frowning up at him.

"Hey doll."

"Where's daddy?"

"He'll be back in a bit."

"Mm." She pressed a hand to his arm reactor and closed her eyes again, shifting uneasily. "Hurts," she whimpered.

"I know, sweetheart, I'm sorry. Being sick is no fun at all." He went to the couch and burrito-wrapped her into the softest fleece blanket they had. "This better?"

"Yeah."

Dummy exited the elevator and chirped anxiously. He rolled over to them and draped a cool cloth on Allie's forehead. She reached out to pat Dummy's shoulder joint, and he chirped again.

"Tank you," she said, coughing.

Allie fell asleep again after that, and slept through the changing of arms twenty minutes later. When she woke up again, crying out from a fever-induced dream of evil ninjas, it was her mother that soothed her.

"Shh, baby, you're okay, you're safe." Natasha kissed her forehead. "It's just a bad dream. You're safe."

Allie flailed helplessly. "No, no I want my mommy," she mumbled, still caught in her dream. "Daddy! Steeb! Mommy! Bwuce!" She winced away from the cool cloth. "No! Go 'way!" In the midst of her dream, she tried to turn into a dragon, and her whole body shuddered with effort. She woke up with a cry of pain, and nearly fell off the bed trying to get away from the dark figure she saw above her.

"JARVIS lights, ten percent," Natasha ordered desperately. She held out her hands peacefully. "Allie, Allie, sweetheart, it's mommy. It's me. You're safe, I promise. It was just a dream, baby, I promise."

Allie stared suspiciously at her mother, and then, it registered. "Mommy!" She threw herself into Natasha's arms, sobbing. "You okay," she sobbed, "you okay. Steeb? Bwuce? Daddy? Tony? Bucky? Dey okay?"

Natasha held her close, rocking her and kissing her hair. "We're okay, baby, I promise. It was just a dream." She hid her tears in Allie's hair until the little girl quieted and sniffled herself back to sleep. And then she looked up at Clint, who had suddenly appeared at her shoulder. "This is the hardest thing I've ever had to deal with," she whispered. "I can't stand it."

Clint hugged his wife and kissed her. "I know," he said, and admitted, "me too. Seeing her cry breaks my heart." He pressed another kiss to Natasha's lips. "But it's just temporary. She's going to be okay."

"I know," Natasha said, sighing.

"You want to set her down?" Clint asked, gesturing to the bed.

Natasha shook her head.

A day passed. Two days. Four. The fever left, came back, left, stayed. Tony hired the best children's specialists in New York for his medical ward to take care of Allie. The Avengers took turns sitting with her and keeping her entertained when she was awake. Bucky only visited at random times, only for five minutes. It was hard for him, seeing a flushed, exhausted Allie laying in a hospital bed, linked to an IV that was giving her the fluids and nutrients that she needed. It made him want to smash things, Hulk-style.

Bruce and Hank McCoy were working on a cure to her illness, but it was slow-going. They'd figured out that it was similar to the Legacy virus that the X-Men had previously dealt with, but this one had specifically targeted Allie, and it didn't seem to want to burn out itself. They were running out of options, and time, since Allie's small body couldn't take much more of the constant strain. And every time she inadvertently tried to shape-shift, it made her worse.

Clint and Natasha hadn't slept well in days, taking turns trying to track down leads on who built the virus and taking care of Allie. Sam was trying to keep them and the rest of the team from completely neglecting their own health, but he was only one person. "We need Darcy," he muttered to Bucky, who was literally standing guard outside of Natasha's door until the assassin got six solid hours of sleep. "She could out-boss Fury."

Bucky shook his head. "She's in London with Doctor Foster and Doctor Selvig."

"How do you know?" Sam asked.

The tips of Bucky's ears flushed red.

Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Shut up," Bucky muttered, folding his arms and giving him his best 'Winter Soldier' glare.

Sam held up his hands and backed off. "Hey, I'm not gonna pry. Just, I'm here if you wanna talk."

"There's nothing to talk about," Bucky said firmly.

A few hours later, there was. Gravitational anomalies filled England, there were aliens and spaceships in Greenwich - Thor was back, and so was a whole boatload of problems.

"Seriously? Now?" Tony asked, annoyed, shoving pieces of the Iron Man armor on. "He has to bring chaos now? We're in the middle of a crisis!" He popped his helmet on. "J, inform Dr. Foster I'll be there in a couple hours."

"Yes sir."

Tony arrived as soon as the first couple teams of SHIELD did for the cleanup. He tracked Thor straight to Dr. Foster's mother's apartment and let himself in. "You could've called ya know," he said loudly, interrupting Thor and Jane's makeout session.

Thor grinned and stood up. "Tony Stark!" he said, grabbing the billionaire in a huge hug. "I am glad to see you." He stepped back slightly. "And, there was not time, or I would have very gladly called upon my fellow warriors."

Tony nodded distractedly. "Then in the words of our fearless Cap, sit rep?"

Thor and Jane, and Darcy when she comes in later, take turns explaining what had happened, and then Darcy asked, "So how's everyone? Allie hasn't texted me lately."

Tony scowled and rubbed at his face with both hands. "Which brings us to our next topic. Allie's sick."

"What?!" came the outraged and worried reactions. "Why weren't we told?" Jane demanded.

Tony pointed out the window, where one could still see the smoke rising in the distance.

"Oh yeah."

"What's wrong with her?" Darcy asked urgently.

Tony explained, and looked at Thor. "We're running out of time, and we don't know how to help her. Does Asgard have healers that could help?"

Thor nodded. "I can arrange it." He clasped Tony on the shoulder. "I will return to Asgard immediately and send them to the Tower as soon as possible."

"Thank you."

Thor swept out of the apartment, and a whoosh proclaimed his exit from the realm a few moments later.

"Can we go back?" Darcy pestered Jane.

Jane shook her head helplessly. "We need to stay here and deal with the aftermath. The readings alone will revolutionize science and technology for the next fifty years. But we'll get it done as soon as we can, okay?"

Darcy nodded.

Tony frowned. "What equipment do you need to make it happen?"

Jane started spouting off a list, and JARVIS began to work his magic.

Tony went to greet Coulson and offer him some SI resources for clean-up, which were gratefully accepted on behalf of New SHIELD, and then he went directly back to New York.

When he got inside the building, there was still no change to either Allie's condition or Bruce's work. He updated the team on the Greenwich incident, and told them Thor was coming back with a healer.

"When?" Natasha asked.

"Don't know. Soon."

Natasha nodded and went to sit with her daughter. "Tor's comin' back?" Allie asked tiredly.

"Yeah sweetheart, he's on his way."

"Kay."

It was seven hours later when Thor came back to Earth, an older woman in his wake. "My friends," Thor said gravely, as the Avengers gathered around him to say hi. "This is Eir, she is a very gifted healer. She helped Jane with the Aether, and she promises to help Allie."

"Greetings," Eir said, giving them a regal nod.

"This way," Bruce said, ushering her into the elevator.

"You trust her?" Clint asked Thor quietly, as they took the stairs.

"Yes."

Clint nodded, and hurried up.

Eir set up a smaller version of the Soul Forge near Allie's bed, and lowered the screen over the bed. "As your Dr. Foster said, this is a quantum field generator," she explained to Tony and Bruce, and a cautious Natasha. "It will tell us what is wrong with the child."

"My name's Allie," the five-year-old protested.

Eir smiled down at Allie and touched her hair. "Greetings, Allie. May I run the scan?"

Allie shuddered under her touch and shook her head. "Does it hurt?"

"No, I promise."

"Okay."

The machine did its thing, and the scan popped up, several sections highlighted in red. "A viral infection targeting her immune system," Eir said, and frowned. "This was bio-engineered for her specific cells. She has a mutation, yes?"

"Yes."

"It is inhibiting their use."

"We know all that already," Tony said impatiently. "How do you fix it?"

"A cleanse," Eir said simply.

"What does that mean?" Bruce pressed.

Eir gestured to the Soul Forge. "This has identified all the foreign agents and it can easily remove them. After that it will be a simple restorative field to allow her to regain her strength."

Clint and Natasha shared a glance. "Do it," Clint said.

Eir smiled down at Allie. "Close your eyes, child. When you wake up you will feel much better."

Allie closed her eyes, holding tight to her daddy's hand, and Eir passed a hand over Allie's forehead. Allie sighed, and was instantly asleep.

Eir set the Soul Forge to do its thing, filling the area around Allie with a thick, warm orange fog, and ushered the group of people out. "It will take several hours to cleanse her system and heal her," she said. "I will call you when the process is complete."

"We're staying with her," Natasha said, holding Clint's hand.

Eir nodded. "Very well, but don't touch her. The Soul Forge is very precisely calibrated."

They both nodded.

"Tell us," Steve requested quietly, and moved everyone out of the ward.

Several hours passed as the superspies paced and watched and waited. Eir sat gracefully in the corner and watched the holographic display. And then the Soul Forge beeped, and chimed.

"What is it?" Clint asked anxiously.

Eir checked the settings again, and pressed a hand to Allie's forehead. She was cool to the touch. "She is well," she said. "She will be tired but as long as she rests she will be back to normal in no time at all."

Allie stirred under the gentle touch and raised her arms to stretch. "Mommy?" she asked, blinking awake. Her eyes were bright and clear, contrasting with the dark circles under them. "It worked?"

"It worked," Natasha confirmed, pulling Allie into her arms and hugging her tightly.

Clint kissed his little girl and hugged them both. "Thank you," he told Eir.

She nodded silently.

Allie let her parents fuss over her, and then turned to the door as it opened and the Avengers spilled in. "I'm better!" she announced, and allowed herself to be hugged by everyone. She stayed in Thor's arms. "Did you bring me a present?" she asked.

He chuckled and kissed her hair. "I did indeed." He pulled a small leather pouch from his pocket and handed it to her.

She opened the pouch carefully and pulled out a beautiful carved statue of a tree. "What is it?" she asked.

"It's a music box," he said, folding her fingers around the small statue. "Listen."

She closed her eyes, and her jaw dropped. "There's music," she whispered, opening her eyes and looking around. She looked at the statue, and carefully opened her fingers. "It stopped," she said, surprised.

"It only works if you listen," Thor replied enigmatically.

"What song is it?" Allie asked. "It's weally beautiful."

"The song of the world tree," Thor said. "The universe makes it. This is like a small, radio, that helps you hear it."

"Oh." Allie kissed his cheek. "Thank you." She carefully put it back in the pouch and stuck it in the pocket of her pajamas.

Eir cleared her throat subtly.

Thor knelt to put Allie on the ground. "Yes. Thank you, Eir, for your help."

Allie walked over to Eir and tapped her on the arm gently. "Can I ask you a question?"

"The fever will not come back," Eir told.

"That wasn't my question," Allie persisted.

Eir sighed. "Very well. What is your question?"

"What do you really look like?"

The innocent question made all the Avengers freeze and turn to look at Eir.

"What do you speak of?" Eir asked.

"You're a shapeshifter," Allie replied. "Whenever you touched my forehead it made me feel itchy, like when my biological daddy did, and he's a shapeshifter, so you're a shapeshifter."

Eir waved a dismissive hand. "You are simply reacting to an alien skin."

"Nuh-uh. Thor doesn't feel weird. You do." Allie lifted her chin stubbornly. "Why are you lying?"

Eir gave the child a measuring gaze, and nodded once. "Very well. Since you asked." Her eyes glowed green, and the wise healer turned into a black-haired trickster. "Hello, Allie."

 **A/N: Sorry not sorry for the cliffhanger. This will encourage me to finish the next chapter quickly though :)**


	21. Chapter 21

The Avengers were instantly on alert, and Clint scooped up Allie and pulled her back before anyone else could move.

"Loki," Thor said, astonished. "I thought you were dead..."

"That's because you're an idiot," Loki said, somewhat cheerfully. He pointed to Allie. "The child has a better sense of deception than you do."

Thor's expression darkened. "When did you come back?" His eyes widened. "The Allfather-"

"Is still in Odinsleep," Loki said dismissively. "I took his place while you were busy with your Jane Foster."

"And Eir?" Thor demanded.

"She is tending to a sick family on the outskirts of the realm," Loki replied. "You were frantic, and I wanted to see why a youngling mortal was of such importance to you. I can see of course. She's very powerful."

Clint bristled and held Allie closer. "Stay away from her," he growled.

"Calm yourself," Loki said briskly. He held out his wrists. "Take me away, then," he told the Thunderer.

Thor tilted his head and looked at Loki closely. "Why did you help?" he asked.

"I could hardly take the form of Eir and _not_ help, could I?" Loki asked.

Thor grumbled something under his breath and grabbed his adoptive brother. "We are returning to Asgard," he announced, and half-dragged half-frog-marched Loki up to the roof, where they promptly disappeared.

Bruce and Hank ran several thorough scans on Allie to make sure that she was actually back to full health, and to make sure that Loki hadn't done anything. She was fine, and to demonstrate it, she turned into a fluffy snowball puppy and cuddled with Clint until he was calm again.

A~A~A~A

Thor was back on Earth by the next day. "The Allfather is awake," he announced grimly, leaning against the wall, and rubbing his face with his hand. "He was not pleased with Loki's machinations, but he could not discount his actions in saving the realms from Malekith."

"So, what's the verdict?" Steve asked cautiously.

"He will live, but his powers will be removed," Thor said. "Loki is now a mortal, as fragile as anyone else."

"Good," Clint muttered. "I can punch him and it'll hurt."

Natasha grabbed his hand in comfort.

Thor gave them a look. "Loki has asked to be removed to Midgard."

A unanimous "NO!" from everyone including JARVIS.

"Why, he scared that one of your buddies is gonna drive a stake through his heart?" Tony asked.

"Frankly yes." Thor scrubbed at his face again. "I do not know if you noticed the color of his eyes."

Bruce frowned. "No. Why?"

"Since I have known him, his eyes are green," Thor said.

"Okay," Steve said, "and?"

"When he tried to take over the world, his eyes were blue."

Sam groaned. "No, no way man, you're trying to tell us he was also brainwashed?"

Thor sighed. "He doesn't want to admit it, but Odin made a healer read his mind and we discovered the truth. A being more powerful than Loki bent him to his will."

Steve had that Look on his face. "Is he going to behave?"

"He cannot do otherwise."

"Steve no," Clint said, aghast. "We can't bring him here. What about Allie? There is _no_ way I'm letting that, that-" he took a deep breath, " _him_ , near my child. No way."

"Clint-"

"No," Clint said firmly.

Natasha gave the others a look, and they filed out of the room quickly. She turned to Clint and put her hands on his cheeks. "Clint," she said softly.

"No," he said again, closing his eyes. "After all he did-"

"After all he made you do, is what you're thinking," she corrected gently.

He flinched away from her, and then stepped closer again, burying his face in her shoulder. "Nat, don't..."

"If you go by what you're saying, I wouldn't be here," she continued softly, "you wouldn't be here, Bucky wouldn't be here-"

"Nat, he's _dangerous_."

"Clint, we are two spysassins that adopted a child, who regularly plays with and gets her hair braided by other spysassins and gods and people who can transform into rage monsters." She made him look at her again. "If he's going to be mortal, and if we can get him to reform, wouldn't that be worth the effort to have him on our side?"

Clint groaned and dropped his head back into the warmth of her neck. "No," he grumbled.

"I'm not saying I like it, or that I trust him an inch, but it's the truth."

He was silent.

She kissed his temple and ran her fingers through his short hair. "How about this."

He lifted his head and eyed her suspiciously. "What?"

"If Allie's scared of him, then it's not happening. But if she's not, and he behaves, we'll deal. Nobody wants to do this but it will be worth it. And if he steps out of line just once, he's done." She held his gaze. "What do you think?"

Clint sighed. "Fine. But if he messes up I get to put an arrow through his eye."

"Deal."

A~A~A~A

Loki's arrival on Earth was much more auspicious. All the Avengers were armed, and Allie was on a secure level being guarded by JARVIS.

"I come in peace," was the first thing Loki said, holding up his hands.

Narrowed eyes met his words, and Tony slapped a metal bracelet on his wrist. "You better."

Loki tugged at the bracelet and scowled. "What is this?"

"A tracking device," Tony replied. "Take it off and you get a nasty electric shock. Try and do something stupid and you get knocked out. And then get dumped off a cliff."

"There's nothing to do on this stupid planet, anyway," Loki muttered, giving his elder brother a sulky look.

Tony patted him on the shoulder with quite a bit of force. "If you behave for the next hundred years maybe we'll give you a small third-world country to dictate over. How's that?"

Loki scowled murderously and a poof of fine misty frost startled Tony away from him.

"Hey!" Bucky protested, pointing at the dissipating frost, "that is _not_ mortal."

"He's a mortal Jotun," Thor replied tiredly, "not a mortal human. Therefore, he does retain a limited ability to create and manipulate frost and ice, shapeshift between his Jotun and human forms, and-"

"I'm smarter than you, mortal or not," Loki sneered.

"And from his education on Asgard he is very clever," Thor admitted.

"We've arranged quarters for you on Thor's floor," Steve said to Loki, as they piled into the elevator. "You can leave that floor if there's two Avengers with you at all times. If you come up with something useful to do, we'll make arrangements."

Loki nodded. "Fine." He was shown to his quarters, grudgingly admitted they were adequate, and refused the offer of food.

They left him there, and adjourned to the common room. "So," Sam said, after a second, "who's going to tell Coulson?"

A~A~A~A

It was four days before Allie even saw Loki, and then only because she went looking for Steve, and found Steve and Sam guarding Loki. Loki was on YouTube of all places, watching video game bloggers play Minecraft.

"Steeb," Allie said cheerfully, jumping into Steve's lap and hugging him.

"Hi baby, how was school?"

She shrugged. "Normal. Hi Sam."

"Hey, kiddo."

She turned to the trickster. "Hi Loki."

He raised an imperious eyebrow at her. "Hello. Come out of hiding, have we?"

She frowned at him, confused. "Were you hiding? Dat's not a good spot, I can see you."

"No, you were hiding."

"No, I wasn't."

"Well then where have you been these past four days?"

"At school," she replied.

"School," he repeated, and closed the laptop. "Tell me child. What does your world's education consist of?"

She frowned at him again. "You're confusing," she declared, and turned into a puppy.

"That's it?" Loki asked the small beagle. "You're just going to ignore me?"

Allie buried her head in Steve's stomach and wagged her tail lazily as he smoothed the fur over her back.

"Conversation's over, man," Sam said, highly amused.

Loki went back to watching Minecraft videos. "Where does one acquire redstone on this planet?" he asked.

Steve sighed.

A~A~A~A

"Why are you white?" Allie asked.

Tony groaned from behind her. "I am not going to say the Mean Girls reference that we're all thinking. I'm not."

Allie ignored him and all the other Avengers sitting at the dining room table and kept staring at Loki, her little face intense with concentration.

"What kind of question is that?" Loki asked, exasperated. "I haven't been exposed to harmful UV radiation to make my skin increase its melanin production. There. Go away."

"No," Allie said, tugging at the hem of his dark grey t-shirt. "Why do you look like Thor, if you're a snow man?"

"Frost Giant," Loki corrected harshly.

"Dat. Aren't you s'pose to be blue, or crystal-y, or something?"

Loki frowned at her. "I keep this form because it pleases me to do so."

"What do you really really look like for really reals?"

"A monster," Loki hissed, nearly nose to nose with her.

She stared back at him. "Do the rules apply to you?" she asked, her voice quite serious.

He pulled back and blinked. "What?"

"Do the rules apply to you?" she asked.

"Well, yes," he said, holding up his wrist where the tracker sat.

"And in Asgard, you'd've followed de rules?" she asked. "If you was king?"

"Yes."

"And if the bad man came again you wouldn't break de rules to be on his side?"

Loki shuddered, remembering that feeling of being pulled out and unmade, and shook his head. "No."

She smiled. "Den you're not a monster, no matter what you look like. You were just a bad guy for a while. But now you can be good. Like Bucky."

He just _stared_ at her for a while.

Everyone else in the room just stared, too.

She continued to look at Loki expectantly. "So what do you look like?"

Slowly, distrustfully, he allowed his form to shift. His skin darkened to blue, his eyes shifted to red, and he looked at Allie silently, waiting for judgement.

She was staring at him. "That's so cool," she whispered, reaching out to touch his arm. He was cold. "You're _literally_ cool," she whispered. "The blue's so prettyy..." She stepped back, and then shifted to reflect it. Her skin turned a deep blue, her eyes turned red, and her hair shimmered to a glossy black, her clothing reforming around her as a regal little robe in satiny silver. "What do you think?" she asked, giving a twirl, and looking back at Loki with a smile.

He shifted back into his human form and cleared his throat roughly. "You're too small," he said, his voice husky with that-which-is-not-emotion. "Frost Giants, they're never that small."

"You were," Thor said softly. "As a babe, you fit within mother's arms."

Loki looked at this little girl who smiled at him without judgement, and asked in a slightly broken voice, "Allie, may I hug you?"

She jumped into his lap and let him hug her, leaning against his thin chest. She turned back into her regular human form, and wound her thin arms around his neck. "You're gonna be okay," she said calmly. "You just need a mission to make you remember de good stuff." She craned her head to look at the shocked Avengers. "He needs a mission," she stated.

"You heard the lady," Bucky said, giving the others an incredulous look. "We need to find him a mission to save the world."

A~A~A~A

"I found him," Natasha said triumphantly, to the air. She looked up from the computer. "Clint!" she hollered.

Clint stalked into the living room. "What's up?"

"JARVIS and I have been working on tracing anyone who could have infected Allie with the virus," Natasha said, "and we've found him." She threw up on screen security footage of the school day before Allie got sick. There was an SI employee in the school room. He carefully withdrew a vial of clear fluid and poured it onto Allie's desk and chair, and then departed.

"Who is it?" Clint asked, his eyes glinting with rage.

"Eric Morsten, Biochem R&D."

"J, tell the others we're going hunting. Make sure Allie stays with one of them."

"Yes sir."

The two enraged parents stalked down to the Biochem R&D and collared Eric Morsten, and brought him directly to a detention room. "Speak," Natasha ordered, as Clint threw him none-too-gently into the chair.

"Hey, what-"

"Don't. Play. Games," Natasha said, her voice low and threatening. This was full Black Widow, protecting her young.

Morsten blanched and tugged at his collar. "It wasn't meant to be lethal," he said.

Clint drew a blade from his boot and began to twirl it absently. "So it was just meant to be debilitating."

"Yes, no, I mean- it was just supposed to be a test." He cringed away from the twirling knife. "I'm working on gene typing. I got interested in the X-gene, and, the Legacy virus since it was designed for that, so, I tried to copy the targeting system but I didn't know if it would work, so I set it to the X-gene to test it out. And the only test subject I knew was the little girl, so-"

"So you gave her the superflu," Natasha said savagely.

"She wasn't supposed to get it that strong! She should have had antibodies in her system from the last time she got the flu or the cold! It wasn't supposed to be that bad! I don't know what went wrong."

"What went wrong is that Allie has _never been sick_ , until some idiot _SPECIFICALLY TARGETED HER WITH THE FLU and forgot to make a CURE!_ " Natasha yelled, a stiletto knife in her hand dangerously close to his throat. " _She almost DIED_."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I didn't know! Please don't kill me."

Natasha glared at him. Clint's glowering from the corner didn't help either.

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to test it..."

The door slammed open and a powerful figure in a t-shirt and jeans strode into the room, grabbing Morsten and pressing him against the wall. "Needless to say, you're under arrest for like twenty different things and you're never going to see the light of day again," Steve Rogers said, his tone cold steel as he glared. "You should be glad I came in when I did." He hauled him out, giving Natasha and Clint a moment to compose themselves before following him.

"For the record, we're doing stupidity tests for all personnel, effective immediately," Tony said flatly. "JARVIS, get on it right way. Call Pepper." He looked at Clint and Natasha. "This won't happen again."

Clint nodded in thanks.

The two of them went upstairs and found Sam, Bucky, and Allie babysitting Loki. They were showing him the wonderful world of television. Currently they were watching NCIS.

"These plots are so predictable," Loki was saying.

"That's not why you watch dem, silly," Allie said wisely, "you watch 'em for the _funnies_." She reached up and smacked Loki upside the head. "Gibbs slap!" she said cheerfully.

Clint laughed until he almost cried.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: More Allie shenanigans :)**

 _It was the smell that was the worst. Clint had long ago inured himself to the smell of blood, of guts, the smell of death, of poverty, the stench of fear. But the smell of alien sweat and blood... it made him want to vomit..._

Clint jolted awake, gasping for breath, trying to process the clean, vanilla-scented air of the Tower.

Natasha was instantly awake by his side, and hovering cautiously out of arms reach. They both knew what it was to wake up with nightmares, and so true to promise she stayed out of his way until he could calm down. He always did the same for her. "Clint?" she murmured, once he'd stopped heaving for air.

He rubbed a hand over his face and let out a groan. "I'm okay," he grunted. "It was just a nightmare. Memory. Something." He sat on the edge of the bed and put his face in his hands, breathing deep.

Natasha moved up behind him and gently put her hands on his shoulders, massaging his tense muscles silently.

He let himself relax until his back hit her chest, and he took her hands in his. "Thank you," he said, kissing her hands.

She pressed a kiss to his hair. "Do you want to come back to bed?"

"No." He shuddered. "No I don't think I can get to sleep again." He stood up and grabbed his hoodie off the chair. "I'll go watch some crap TV, maybe play a game."

"Tetris 4000?" she asked wryly, curling back under the covers.

He smirked. "Yeah, gotta beat my own high score."

He stopped to check on Allie. She was sound asleep, a tiny lump of puppy under the covers in the very center of her bed. He smiled at the sight of a tiny nose peeking out from the covers, and continued on to the common room. Most nights, someone was awake due to work, nightmares, insomnia, or calls to the other side of the world.

Tonight, there was only one person in the living room, sitting on the couch, reading a thick, heavy book. Loki. "Trouble sleeping?" he asked the archer quietly.

Clint frowned at him. "Yeah. You?"

"Same."

Clint went to the kitchen, made himself some tea (yes he drank tea from time to time, he wasn't an animal, and yes okay technically it was Natasha's special post-workout muscle relaxing blend), and made himself a perch on the other side of the common room, sitting on top of the couch. "JARVIS, TV," he said, "low volume. Please."

The TV switched on, and automatically went to the old westerns movie channel. That, and infomercials, were the only things that could soothe insomniac Avengers.

The two men ignored each other for the first hour. And then Loki asked a question about John Wayne. Clint explained.

When Steve got up at six to have a smoothie before his workout, he found Loki and Clint sitting on the sofa eating popcorn and watching The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Steve just raised an eyebrow and continued on his way.

A~A~A~A

Tony walked into the living room, bleary-eyed and still mentally in the land of differential equations. He walked past the giant snow pile in the living room, made a beeline for the coffee, poured a giant cup of coffee, gulped it down, refilled his cup, and started back to the elevator, stepping around the end of the ice slide. He got in the elevator, and leaned against the side. "Lab," he said hoarsely.

"Yes sir," JARVIS replied placidly.

He got to the lab, took another sip of coffee, and promptly choked on it. "JARVIS!" he wheezed, running to the elevator, and hopping in it. "Common room!"

The elevator whisked him back to the common room, and he catapulted himself back into the living room.

"WHAT-" Tony could only stop and stare. "What did you do to my living room?!" he demanded.

The entire living room and dining area had been covered in a solid layer of ice, and there was essentially a giant ice slide, six feet high at one end and floor-level at the other, with a pile of soft snow to keep one from crashing out the wall. Loki was sitting quite calmly on a kitchen chair, Clint was juggling snow balls while perched on a snowdrift, and Sam was filming an adorable penguin that was sliding on the ice. No one paid the gaping Tony any attention.

"How did you get snow?" Tony demanded almost feverishly. "It's August! What are you doing? Is that Allie?"

"When was the last time he slept?" Loki asked Clint idly.

"I dunno. J?"

"Three days ago," JARVIS replied.

Tony squinted at them suspiciously and looked at the small penguin that came to bump his leg. "Allie?"

The penguin chirped.

"Am I hallucinating?" Tony asked numbly, reaching down to smooth her sleek feathers.

Sam grabbed him by the shoulders, steered him to the sofa, and pushed him down onto it. "Go to sleep, man," he said.

Tony lay there in a daze, and watched Allie the penguin have the time of her life with the snow and ice. He fell asleep sometime after that, and didn't even notice the ice disappear.

When he woke up, there was a movie on the screen, a puppy curled up on his chest, and he was snugly tucked under a blanket. He kissed Allie's head, and went back to sleep.

When he woke up again, Allie was still curled into his side, this time as her normal self, and she was reading Babysitter's Club. "Hi Tony," she said, kissing his cheek. She made a face. "You need to shave."

He scrubbed a hand over the three-day stubble and grinned wryly. "Yeah, I probably should huh?" He sat up, stretched, groaned, and leaned against the back of the couch. "Where'd everybody go?" he asked.

"It's tomorrow," she replied matter-of-factly. "I was just waitin' for you to wake up so you could come with me to school."

"Why?"

"You's got to judge our robot ideas."

"I do? When did I agree to this?"

"Last week," Allie replied. "Remember?"

He didn't. But he wasn't going to let Allie down. "Uh... how much time do I have?"

"An hour."

"Okay. I'll be there."

She gave him a beaming smile and hugged him. "Yay thank you. Now go shower cuz you stinky."

He laughed. "All right, all right, I'm going."

An hour later he presented himself at the schoolroom, shaved, dressed in slacks and a Science Rocks! t-shirt, and with Pepper's admonishments to be nice ringing in his ears.

He had to admit the kids had some really great ideas for robots, and he picked the three with the most potential so that they could work directly with R&D to make their robots reality.

Afterwards was a sort of Q&A with the kids, and they asked him questions about being Iron Man, how his suit worked, how he came up with such good ideas, what it was like being at college, working with the Avengers, and so on and so forth.

Tony left the classroom in a good mood, and decided that he and the Avengers should do more of that, encouraging kids. He had JARVIS set up the program, and went back down to his labs.

A~A~A~A

Loki, as a shapeshifter himself, was intrigued by Allie's potential. He could sense that she was still only using a fraction of her power, and he knew that all she needed was training, and time. When she was grown, she would be formidable. Now, if she shifted into any creature larger than five feet, she could only maintain the form for a few minutes.

"Allie," he said one day, as she was working on a history project.

She glanced at him. "Hm?"

"Can you take the form of inanimate objects?"

She frowned. "Dunno. What's a nana mitt? Granny gloves?"

"In-animate," he enunciated. "It is something not living, like a rock, or a sofa."

"Oh. I don't know, I never tried it before." She gave him a wide-eyed look. "Will you help me try it?"

He smirked at the use of her persuasive powers and agreed. "Very well."

The rest of the day was spent in contemplation of inanimate forms, and Loki teaching her how to isolate the feeling of her powers inside her head so that she could maintain a form that wouldn't move.

That evening, after dinner, they sat on the living room floor and Allie stared solemnly at a Lego block until suddenly, she shapeshifted into a perfect two-by-two blue Lego block.

"Well done," Loki praised, grinning. He raised his voice to capture the attention of the other Avengers who were playing poker across the room. "We have made a breakthrough," he announced.

They all put their cards down and came over, stopping to stare at the mess of Legos on the ground. "Where's Allie?" Natasha asked.

Loki smirked. "She is one of the Legos."

"What!" They all took several hasty steps back. "We didn't step on her, did we?" Steve asked cautiously.

Loki's smirk widened. "No. Can you guess which one she is?"

Even Clint's sharp eyes couldn't tell the difference. "Okay, I give up," he said. "Which one is she?"

Loki let his eyes widen. "I don't know."

They all stared at him. Bucky's eyes narrowed. "Is this a prank?" he asked. "Is Allie in the hallway or something?"

"No," Loki said, looking worried, "she is a Lego. I don't know which one she is."

"Allie," Natasha said urgently, "you need to change back right now."

There was no movement from the field of blocks.

"What if she can't change back?" Bruce suddenly whispered.

The Lego block in the middle of the floor suddenly turned into a small Golden Retriever, and pranced around the Avengers happily.

"Oh good," Clint sighed in relief, kneeling down to hug his daughter.

She turned into a human and giggled. "Did we getcha?" she asked.

Their jaws dropped. "Pranksters!" Bucky accused, starting to grin.

Allie and Loki fist-bumped. "No really though," Loki added. "This is a landmark event. Allie can now transform into inanimate objects after some concentration."

"Lots of concentration," Allie corrected, rubbing at her forehead. "But it's boring being a Lego."

The next few days everyone went around talking to pieces of furniture, wondering if it was Allie. Coulson didn't know of Allie's latest accomplishment, and came into the kitchen to find Steve talking to a coffee mug.

"Don't forget that we're going to Coney Island this weekend for the charity event," Steve was saying. "You and Darcy are going to get to have all the fun."

Coulson's eyes widened and he carefully backtracked out of the kitchen. His hero, his favorite person ever, was going crazy...

"He's not crazy," Natasha said, coming up behind him. "He's talking to Allie."

Coulson sagged in relief. "Oh, thank goodness."

Natasha laughed at him and went into the kitchen. "Turn into something else, _malyshka_ , Uncle Coulson wants to say hi."

The coffee mug transformed back into Allie, and she hugged Coulson enthusiastically. "We haven't seen you in forever!" she said, hugging him tightly.

He smiled and hugged her. "I know, I'm sorry." He looked at Steve.

Steve nodded. "Allie, sweetheart, can you excuse us?"

Allie nodded, and left. "Mom, mom, mom, when you're done with your confidential stuff you have to come see what I made." And she zoomed out of the kitchen.

Coulson pulled out a tablet and showed the two Avengers a list of places. "These are suspected HYDRA holdouts," he said, creating a holographic map. "They seem to be regrouping, and there's one loose end that we still haven't been able to wrap up."

"The sceptre," Steve said grimly.

"Yes."

"We'll find it," Steve told him.

Coulson nodded. "I have every faith in you, Captain."

"Now that he's not talking to kitchenware, huh," Natasha added, smirking.

Coulson blushed and Steve frowned. "Huh?"

"Nothing."

A~A~A~A

Their objective was announced that evening at dinner. Everyone stopped eating and looked at Loki.

"I don't know where it is," he said peevishly. "Once I fell out of its control I could no longer sense it." He narrowed his eyes. "But if it is here and people are trying to harness its power we must find it right away."

"We?" Steve asked.

"Yes," Loki said firmly.

He and Bruce worked together on a program to trace the scepter's radiation, and to everyone's surprise Loki really was helpful.

Even still, it took them several months to work through the list of HYDRA strongholds, and the Avengers were going strong. Allie worried about them a lot, and made it her goal to help them. She would pack all of them snacks, and everyone appreciated the surprise protein bars in their pockets. And when one of them came home injured or exhausted, she would stay with them, doing school on her tablet, and feeding them healthy snacks and tea. She even made Dummy hide the coffee from Tony when he came home from a mission with a broken leg, and insisted he only drink milk and tea.

JARVIS loved her even more for her efforts.

A~A~A~A


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Hi! I finally got this out! This chapter seriously, was like pulling teeth. Blindfolded. While riding a horse. Or something like that :) Spoilers for Age of Ultron :)**

"He looks nasty."

"He is." Natasha zoomed into the face. "Baron Von Strucker, one of the top heads of HYDRA right now. We think he's using the scepter for human experimentation, trying to get their mutations to manifest."

"Not cool," Allie piped up from the corner, where she was playing with her spaceships.

"Not cool at all," Loki agreed. "The scepter is too powerful to use on humans, mutants or not."

"But the Tesseract's gone, it can't be that powerful," Steve said. "Can it?"

Loki shook his head. "The scepter is not part of the Tesseract. The scepter contains another Infinity Stone. The Mindstone. There is no..." he shook his head again warily. "It should not be in the hands of any mortal. It is too powerful."

"We knew that already, thanks," Tony said, but there was no heat behind his words. He looked at Steve. "What's our plan of attack, Cap?"

Steve looked at the layout for the fortress in the mountains, and grinned. "Why don't we try the front door?" he asked.

"The front door?" Tony repeated, and grinned. "I like that plan."

"I thought you would."

"I would like to go with you," Loki said quietly.

They all turned to look at him. "Uh, no," Tony said. "Moving on."

Loki huffed. "If the Baron was using the Mindstone for experimentation on humans whatever he created will be more than capable of twisting your puny minds. _Nobody_ wants that to happen again, so it's _logical_ if I go with you to even the odds, as you people say."

"You're mortal too, remember," Natasha said.

"But I know how it works."

Steve sighed. "He's got a point."

Clint scowled. "If he touches it though, can I shoot him?"

Steve sighed again. "Sure."

Everyone looked satisfied with the arrangement.

Allie was not.

"Why do you _all_ have to go?" she asked, clinging to Steve's neck like a very determined limpet.

He hugged her. "It's our job, sweetie. We've gotta make sure that he's not gonna hurt anyone else."

She pouted into his shoulder. "Fine," she said. "But you all come back safe, kay Steeb?"

He kissed her cheek. "As safe as we possibly can," he promised.

Allie repeated the hugs and kisses for everybody on the team, including Loki. "Don't do nuffin stupid," she advised him.

"I will try not to," Loki promised.

"Good."

A~A~A~A

"That was SO stupid!" Tony yelled at a slightly bruised Loki, after the battle. "You don't just _throw yourself_ at enhanced strangers like that!"

Loki pressed an icepack to his black eye and scowled. "If I hadn't subdued the little witch she would have blasted you at point-blank range with her mental powers, genius. Imagine what that would have done. You didn't even _see_ her, Stark. You were too focused on the Leviathan remains."

Tony huffed. "Whatever." He stomped away in his suit muttering, "Of all the stupid... you'd think he'd know better..."

Clint chuckled from the other side of the quinjet.

"Aren't you supposed to be bleeding?" Loki asked crossly.

"Oh, trust me, I'm an excellent multi-tasker," Clint replied, pressing a hand to his side. "But the bleeding's slowed down. I just need to get stitched up."

"Uh-huh."

Steve, who was watching over the two unconscious enhanced, ignored the byplay in favor of staring at the twins. They were so incredibly young, and were a reminder of him and Bucky, just the two of them against the rest of the world.

"Cap?"

He looked up at Sam.

"We're ready to go. SHIELD and the UN are here."

"All right." Steve took a quick headcount and nodded. "Let's go home."

Bucky took the controls and they were off.

Natasha held Clint's hand the whole way home.

A~A~A~A

The quinjet touched down on the landing pad and they all filed off. Allie was waiting anxiously with Maria, and bolted over to Clint with a tiny gasp.

"Hey, pumpkin, I'm okay," he said, before she could say anything. "Stay with Bruce, okay? He needs some cuddles."

"Okay daddy," Allie whispered, watching him and Natasha go into the Med lab where nice Dr. Cho was waiting.

Bucky scooped her up. "He'll be fine, sweet pea, I promise." He kissed her head and passed her to an exhausted-looking Bruce.

Thor passed them, holding the scepter like it was a giant live scorpion.

Allie wrapped her arms around Bruce's neck and ignored the rest of the hustle and bustle. "Snack?" she asked.

"Yeah. Sounds good." He carried her away to the common floor kitchen, his internal rage and guilt already calming due to unconditional child-love. "So, what did you do today?" he asked.

She chatted to him about school and Xbox and her robodog as they made sandwiches and ate. She had half a sandwich, Bruce had four. She refilled his electrolyte drink three times and watched him expectantly until he drank it all. And then she turned into a puppy and cuddled with him until he fell asleep.

"JARBIS, where's mommy?"

"Agent Romanoff is in the Med ward with your father." JARVIS added, seeing her pout, "Mr. Stark is headed there now if you would like to join him."

"Yes please." She ran for the elevator and hopped in, nearly bowling over the billionaire.

"Whoa, Speedy Gonzalez, where are we going?" he asked, amused.

"With you."

"Oh. Cool." He noticed the apprehension in her face and asked, "Would you mind holding my hand, sweetheart? I'm still kinda shaky from the fight."

She clutched his hand in a death grip and leaned into his side silently.

They walked hand-in-hand to the Med ward where Clint was laying on his side, under the regen cradle light. Natasha was helping him drink a smoothie.

"This belong to you?" Tony asked, instead of the joke on the tip of his tongue. Better to play it safe where Allie was around.

"C'mere, _malyshka_ ," Natasha murmured, leaving Clint to his own devices with the smoothie and holding her daughter close.

"You okay, mommy?" Allie asked, her little face squished into Natasha's shoulder.

"I'm okay, baby."

Allie curled into her lap and reached out to hold Clint's hand. "Daddy? Does it hurt?"

"Nope. Look, it's already almost done."

She inspected the site. "Doesn't even look like anything," she said, frowning adorably.

Dr. Cho smiled and explained how it worked.

"Whoa," Allie said, suitably impressed. "Daddy gon' be made of plastic?"

"Nope. It's his own cells."

"Cool." Allie sat with her parents while the regen cradle finished its work, and then went to find Loki.

"Hello Allie," he said, looking up from his bowl of pasta.

She sat across from him and swung her feet. "So," she said, dragging the word out, "how'd it go?"

"Fine," Loki said.

"Tony said you did sometin' stupid."

"I saved his life," Loki replied, irritated.

She nodded sagely. "Then it was a good stupid."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "What is the difference?"

She stole a piece of spaghetti from his bowl and slowly chewed it. "Bad stupid is, like, turning evil again, or, forgetting about de team. Good stupid is, like, Steeb thwowing his shield to cover Bucky, or daddy, or someone, and den gettin' hurt himself. So, you saved Tony, but got beat up. But it's a good stupid." She patted his hand. "You's good on missions." She stole another piece of spaghetti and dropped it into her mouth. "Mmkay. Time for homework." She turned into a bird and flew away.

Loki frowned thoughtfully after her.

A~A~A~A

Wanda and Pietro Romanoff were _not_ happy campers. They'd been put in the Hulk-out room to recover, and Loki had put up a shield that he said would blunt any mental attack. Currently, they were sitting in the corner glaring daggers at Steve and Thor.

"Are you guys hungry?" Steve asked.

Glare.

"Thirsty?"

Glare.

"Injured?"

Glare.

Steve sighed. "How about a pizza? Yes? No? Last call."

Glare.

"Okay, cool, two pizzas coming up." He left.

Thor frowned at them. "We mean you no harm," he said.

Glare.

Thor sighed.

Steve came back with the pizza a few minutes later, and slid it through the portal. "Here you go. Hope you're not vegetarian. If you are though, we can find you something else."

Glare. There was no movement made towards the food.

The door from the hallway opened and Allie came trotting in as a chocolate lab puppy, trailing a fleece blankie in her mouth. She yipped and transformed into a girl, wrapping her arms around Steve's legs. "Steeb, Steeb-" she caught sight of the two strangers staring at her and paused. "Oh," she said softly, hiding behind her flower-patterned blankie. "Hi."

That got a smile out of the boy, the speedster. "Hello," he said.

She went up the glass and waved. "I'm Allie. Who are you?"

The boy gave the two adults a wary glance but answered anyway. "I'm Pietro, and this is my sister Wanda."

"Hello," Wanda said quietly.

Allie gave them both a smile. "You gonna eat the pizza before it gets cold?" she inquired. "Cold pizza's naaaaaastyyyyyyy, unless you're like, weally hungry." She looked at them expectantly.

Gingerly, Wanda opened the box with her telekinesis and raised a slice of pepperoni.

Allie's eyes got huge. "Whooaa," she breathed, pressing her nose to the glass. "That's _awesome_."

Wanda raised an eyebrow at her. "You are not frightened of us?"

"Nope."

"Even though we are in this cage?"

Allie frowned. "'S not a cage, Wanda. It's de time-out room. Dat's where Bwuce goes when he's feelin' Hulk-y and he's gotta remember to be calm again. And Bucky was there for a few days while he remembered Steeb and how to be himself again. And now you guys need to 'member something." She held up the fleece blankie. "You want to borrow my blankie? Something warm and fluffy helps, Bwuce says."

Wanda gave her a smile. "No thank you." Darting a glance at Steve she added, "We are not here to remember anything."

Allie blinked. "Well what're you here for, den?"

"Revenge," Wanda said simply.

Allie brightened up. "You gonna be part of the team?"

" _Re_ venge, not _a_ venge," Pietro corrected.

Allie's whole face scrunched up in confusion. "But dere's no bad guys here."

Wanda's eyes narrowed. "Stark."

"Tony?" Allie frowned. "He's not a bad guy."

"He killed our family," Pietro retorted sharply.

Allie's eyes got big. "No. He wouldn't."

Thor reached forward and ushered her away. "Allie, I think it is time to go play elsewhere."

Allie clung to the edge of his cape. "No," she protested, "how come dey think Tony's bad? He's not!"

"He is!" Wanda said, standing. The forcefield sparked with energy.

Everyone tensed.

"Tell us why you think so," Steve requested calmly.

The twins gave a heart-wrenching story of revolt in their country, and then, the bombings. The missile with Stark emblazoned on the side. Waiting, for the bomb to go off, or someone to rescue them. Living with riots and demonstrations, joining them when they were old enough. And finally, recruitment by HYDRA to become something... more.

"I'm sorry," Tony's voice said, startling everyone. He emerged from the doorway where he'd been hovering. "I am really sorry."

"Murderer!" Wanda hissed.

Allie hid behind Thor.

Tony approached the glass, shaking his head. "By that time, I was no longer producing weapons. I _never_ sold any to rebels."

"Then how do you explain-"

"Obadiah Stane," Tony said soberly. "He was the head of the board. He was secretly selling weapons to arms dealers all over the world. It wasn't me. When I was kidnapped and got this-" he tapped the center of his chest, "I found out the truth. When I came back, I stopped weapons production because I _knew_ , first-hand, what I had caused. And now I'm trying to make up for it." He faced them, his expression unexpectedly vulnerable. "I'm sorry for your loss. I get it, okay? I lost my parents because of HYDRA. But I'm not going to revenge myself on you. And I would appreciate it, if you don't try and kill me, and end up hurting the people I care about."

Both Maximoffs looked shaken, and retreated to the far corner to confer silently.

Allie went over to Tony and asked for a hug. He picked her up, and buried his face in her hair.

"We believe you," Wanda declared, and they both came to stand in front of the superheroes.

"That was fast," Steve said cautiously.

Wanda shrugged. "I read his mind. He is sincere, as are the rest of you."

Everyone's jaws dropped. "How did you-"

"It stopped my telekinesis, not my telepathy," Wanda replied, making the forcefield fizz again.

"Oh." Tony blinked a couple of times, and then turned to Thor. "Anyway, big guy. How long can we have the scepter for study?"

"Three days," Thor said. "Any longer and the Allfather himself will come to retrieve it."

"Got it." Tony put Allie on the ground and headed directly to the lab.

Steve opened the door to the Hulk-out room. "So, welcome to the Tower," he said. "The basic rules are, no fighting, no breaking things unless it's an accident or a lab explosion, and, no swearing with little ears in the room." He patted Allie on the head.

"I knows dem all," Allie informed him. "Tony bwoke his prototype and had to put like a hundred million dollars in de jar and mommy smacked him. But I forgot most of 'em already I think."

Wanda stifled a disbelieving giggle, and Pietro grinned. Thor rolled his eyes.

Steve forced himself not to smile. "Well, we're not gonna use 'em anyways."

Allie took each of the twins' hands and tugged them along. "C'mon, JARBIS'll give you rooms, and I'll show you how to pick your decorations, and, oh, you have to see the kitchen, and my toys, and the TV, and, the shopping app cuz you need pajamas and stuff, and..." her voice faded as they went around the corner.

Steve and Thor shared a glance. "It cannot be that easy, can it?" Thor asked.

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Steve told him, sighing. "C'mon, we better go babysit."

Thor paused. "One of us should stay with the scientists. In case of explosions."

The two blonds shared a significant glance, and parted ways.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N: Next part will be arriving eventually.**

 **While waiting for the next chapter, I offer my two new stories as a pastime. There's another Avengers story featuring a de-aged Cap, and a Doctor Who / Star Trek crossover, for any Whovian Trekkies out there. Thanks for reading! :)**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Fluff, visions of thingamabobs, and from reader request: a 'splosion! :)**

Allie introduced the twins to everyone in the tower, and the twins were amazed to find that no one really grudged them the whole fight thing. Everyone was quite blasé about it.

The twins sank into the shelter of a comfy sofa in their two-person apartment. Allie was a snoozing grey kitten between them, worn out from all the excitement.

"So," Wanda said slowly, "this is... not what we expected."

Pietro laughed wryly. "You can say that again." He zipped away and came back with two cups of hot tea. "Here."

They sipped quietly for a moment and a soft purr made them both look at Allie.

"She's cute," Pietro said fondly. "I was not expecting them to have a child."

"She loves them all very much," Wanda said softly. "She has already begun to think of us as family. So have the rest of them. They're already thinking of us as Avengers. The captain, Steve, is trying to figure out how to ask us."

"Do we want to be heroes?" Pietro asked.

"Can we be anything else?" Wanda asked.

"Just don't decide to be villains," Clint advised them, dropping in through the vent and startling them both. "Anything else but that and we'll support you to the hilt."

"What if we decide to be villains?" Pietro asked snarkily.

Clint shrugged. "Then we'll stop you." He nodded to the snoozing kitty. "Just came by to pick up my kiddo."

"She's adorable," Wanda told him.

He tucked the kitten into the crook of his arm and shot her a grin. "Yeah." With a friendly nod, he strolled out of the apartment.

The twins shared a glance.

A~A~A~A

"The thing in this thing is _alive."_

"Eloquent as always, Stark."

"Hey, you're still on probation."

"At least I know my Infinity Gem terminology."

"Then enlighten me, o wise trickster." Tony made a sweeping bow.

Loki pulled up a hologram of the insides of the scepter. "The thing that's alive is the Mindstone. The crystal around it is just a container, or rather a focuser, to give other objects its power, or control them through it. It's not alive, per se, but it can be likened to a consciousness I suppose."

"So like an AI that's not quite self-aware yet?"

"Somewhat yes."

Tony studied the pulsing, shifting, scan. "Do you think we could copy the way it's set up? Make our own AI?"

Loki eyed him warily. "For what purpose?"

"For science."

The trickster raised an eyebrow. "If you can do it in less than three days."

Tony's eyes lit up. "Is that a challenge?"

Loki's eyes widened. "No. In no way is that a-"

"Too late!" Tony shoved him out of the lab, eyes lighting up with a manic glee. "J! Get Bruce up here, we've got work to do."

No one saw hide nor hair of the two scientists for the next three days.

Steve, and unsurprisingly Bucky, with his infinite mother-henning tendencies, took the twins under their wings and introduced them to all of America's delights. Sam joined these expeditions as the mom-friend who actually knew how to work a Metro card and get the discounts from the special offers online. Clint and Allie went with them to Coney Island.

Natasha and Wanda bonded almost immediately over their shared pseudo-Russian upbringing. Clint and Pietro argued like three-year-olds before falling abruptly into a father-son relationship. Natasha teased her husband for picking up another stray. He retorted with, "And who spent all day talking about exercise gear with the other red-head?"

Allie, for a second, misunderstood their conversation and thought they were adopting the Maximoffs, and nearly rocketed into high orbit with glee.

They explained it was a pseudo-adoption.

"Like, we're all family, but I's the only Barton?" Allie asked.

"Exactly like that baby."

"Cool. That works too."

A~A~A~A

 _He was in a dark, dimly lit room. The only glow came from the scepter sitting in the center of the room. He approached it cautiously. Where was the lab?_

 _A voice spoke, echoing around the room, emanating from within his own mind. "What do you seek?"_

 _Somehow, he knew it was the Mindstone asking._

 _"A way for us to keep people safe," he said. That was the whole point of the AI - help the Avengers help the rest of the world. Somehow, he knew the Mindstone could see what he wanted. And it was so close... he stepped closer to the Mindstone, trying to see the picture forming in its center..._

"Tony?" Steve asked cautiously, as a dazed inventor shuffled into his room at three in the morning. Steve turned on the light. "Everything okay?"

"Need the vibranium," Tony muttered, grabbing the shield from its place on the armchair and shuffling back out again.

"JARVIS, is he awake at all?" Steve asked, worried.

"I believe so," JARVIS replied. "Perhaps you should follow him."

"Yeah." Steve got out of bed, tripped on a trailing sheet, and just missed the elevator.

He hiked up his pajama pants and took the stairs up to the labs. He got there just in time to see Tony grab the scepter from its perch and smash it into the floor. "Tony!"

The billionaire froze. And blinked. And dropped the scepter and the shield with a Clang! "What just happened?" he asked, rubbing his hands over his face.

"You grabbed the shield out of my quarters," Steve replied, frowning at the other man worriedly. "Said you needed the vibranium."

"Wh- okay, J, why didn't you stop me from sleepwalking all over the place?"

"You were not asleep," JARVIS replied, bewildered.

The two men shared a glance. "Then what was that?" Steve asked.

Tony edged away from the scepter. "My eyes aren't blue, are they?"

"No."

"Kay. Good. Just checking."

"JARVIS, alert the others. Common room, ten minutes. Tony, get your scans," Cap ordered.

Ten minutes later everyone was gathered, sleep-rumpled but ready for action. Even Allie, adorably nestled into a flannel-covered metal arm.

It was Wanda who provided the answer when Steve explained what had happened. "It showed you a vision of your future," she said. "It does that sometimes."

"But I can't even remember it," Tony complained.

Wanda held up a hand, fingertips glowing with energy. "May I?"

"Sure."

She frowned. "This?"

And suddenly they were all standing in the dimly-lit room from before.

"Yeah," Tony said, shivering.

They watched silently, feeling what Tony felt, as the dream played out, and they all looked through Tony's eyes as he stared into the depths of the crystal, and they all saw what he saw, the answer to their questions, Tony's mind supplying the what the how.

Wanda broke the dream-state, and they all shifted uneasily.

"That was different," was all Sam said.

"An android," Bruce said. He looked at Tony. "Can we do it?"

"Between you and me, totally." He looked at Thor. "But we'll need the scepter for longer."

Thor frowned. "Very well. But be wary of staring into the jewel. One vision of the future is enough."

"That was going to be my line," Loki snarked.

With that the group dispersed. The scientists went back to the labs, Pietro went on a brief run of the Eastern seaboard out of sheer joie de vivre, and the rest went back to bed. Allie went to cuddle with her parents and watch How to Steal a Million. "Ah, the old days," Clint sighed.

A~A~A~A

Nobody came from Asgard to take the scepter back, so the Avengers took it as tacit approval.

The Science Bros made a shopping list and handed it over to Steve. He assigned retrieval teams.

"Sam, Tasha and I will get the vibranium. Bucky, you and Clint will get the Cradle components from Dr. Cho in Tokyo. Everyone else you're on babysitting watch. Don't let Tony die or Bruce Hulk out, and make sure Allie gets her naps."

Pepper, glorious woman that she was, got Steve an audience with T'Chaka, king of Wakanda, the only source of vibranium on the planet. T'Chaka agreed to trade them the vibranium in exchange for their services as protection when Wakanda made state visits.

So Steve, Sam, and Tasha headed to Africa to escort the vibranium shipment home.

A~A~A~A

Both her parents gone, Allie continued her daily routine. School, hanging out with the three "probie" Avengers, convincing Tony to have snacks.

Loki, unsurprisingly, had taken a shine to Wanda and was teaching her how to refine the control of her powers. He was also still teaching Allie how to control her shape-shifting, and over the next few days the three of them could be found in the gym, practicing.

Thor started teaching Pietro hand-to-hand combat. They stayed on the other side of the gym, away from the flying basketballs and the morphing objects.

A~A~A~A

Allie was being a calla lily when Natasha came home from Wakanda. "Allie?" Natasha called, going into the living room. She passed the flowerpot twice before pausing in front of it. "Allie?"

The calla lily turned into a girl. "Mommy!"

Natasha hugged her tightly. "That's a cute outfit," she said, eyeing the shimmery leggings and the silky green tunic.

"Pepper took me shopping. She wanted new shoes cuz de board are being butts. We got ice cream too."

"Ah." Tasha kissed her hair. "Where is everybody?"

"In the gym. Thor's teaching 'em to play paintball."

Natasha's eyes widened in amusement and horror. "Sounds fun."

"Dey broke a weight machine first round so they sent me away just in case," Allie informed her.

"Good. Why were you being a flower?"

Allie shrugged. "Just cuz."

Natasha pulled a small box from her pocket. "This is for you, from Wakanda."

Allie opened the box. Inside was a delicate silver chain strung with bean-sized brightly colored beads of stone and wood. A smooth metal plate the size of a quarter hung from the middle.

Allie tapped the metal curiously. It made no sound. "Is this like Steve's shield?" she asked.

"Yep. But it's a hundred percent pure vibranium." Natasha lowered her voice. "But don't tell anyone okay, because it's really expensive."

"Kay mommy," Allie whispered. She put the necklace over her head and hugged Natasha tightly. "Thank you lots."

"You're lots welcome," Natasha replied, kissing her cheek.

When Clint came back from Tokyo he raised an eyebrow at Natasha and complimented the necklace. "That's really pretty. Pretty expensive?"

TWO DAYS EARLIER:

"Captain."

"Your Highness."

King T'Chaka nodded to the other two. "Mr. Wilson. Agent Romanoff."

"Sir."

They oversaw the movement of the shipment and got a tour of the public square. Following that, they got to share a meal with the royal family.

Natasha was impressed with Steve's aplomb speaking to both king and prince. She startled when she realized T'Chaka was staring at her.

He said nothing, simply turned away to eat some more.

Later as they were leaving the palace, the king pulled her aside. "You have a child," he said.

Natasha nodded cautiously.

He pulled a beaded necklace with a vibranium pendant from his pocket and held it out. He smiled at her befuddled expression. "A 'souvenir'," he said. "One that might save her life if need be."

"How?"

"The same way it saved my son's." He placed the necklace in her hand and moved to talk to T'Challa and Steve.

Sam raised an eyebrow at her and she shrugged.

PRESENT:

Natasha just smiled and kissed her husband on the cheek. "It was a gift," she said.

A~A~A~A

BOOM!

The floors and ceilings rattled, chandeliers and knick-knacks clattered, and Allie's clay pot from Clint's Guatemala mission died a tragic death off the edge of a table.

There was a silence following the explosion. Then the intercom clicked on, with the sound of coughing. "We're okay!" Tony declared in between hacking coughs, and the intercom clicked off again.

The intercom came on again. "Cleanup crews to Lab 4," came Bruce's tired voice. "Thanks J."

"That's the wrong button," Steve's voice said helpfully over the speaker.

"Oh. Woops." The intercom clicked off again, not before everyone heard a slightly deranged giggle coming from the background. "Tony, are you sure you didn't hit your head-" Bruce started. The speakers went silent.

The twins shared a glance of concern and looked at Clint and Sam, who were playing 3D Virtual Battleship in the corner and hadn't even flinched. "Is this normal?" Pietro asked, pointing at the ceiling.

Clint nodded. "Yep. B4."

Sam smirked. "Miss. C5."

"Miss."

Sam looked up at the ceiling. "JARVIS, everyone okay?"

"All reactions to the explosion read normal," JARVIS reported.

Clint caught Wanda's questioning look and explained, "PTSD. Sometimes explosions'll set one of us off. But JARVIS has our backs, right buddy?"

"Correct, Agent Barton."

A pouting Allie came into the common room, holding the fragmented remains of her clay pot. "Daddy lookit."

He saw what it was and drew her into his arms. "Aw, did it get broken? I'm sorry baby."

She put the pieces on the table. "Can we fix it?" she asked hopefully, giving him puppy eyes.

"Uh..."

The pieces began to glow red and reform themselves into the shape of the pot, their edges melting together when they touched. Within a minute, the pot was sitting whole, if slightly off-center, on the table.

Everybody turned to look at Wanda.

She smiled.

"Wowwww," Allie breathed, reaching out to touch the pot. She hefted it and looked inside. "It's just like new!" She ran over and threw her arms around Wanda. "Thank you thank you!"

"You're very welcome, Allie."

A~A~A~A


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Hello hello. Next chapter :)**

A few days later, the Science Bros had the body forming in the cradle. It was ingenious, the vibranium skeleton and skin forming together in a humanoid body. There was just the matter of the brain...

"It's a vegetable," Tony announced glumly, poking at the hologram.

Steve surveyed the flashing, spinning hologram dubiously. "Doesn't look very vegetable like to me."

"Well it is. Without sticking the mindstone directly into the shell I don't see how we can copy over the spark that makes it a true sentient being." Tony huffed. "Even Bruce is stuck."

"Where is he?"

"Playing tea time with Allie."

"Ah."

Downstairs in the common room, Allie and Bruce were sharing a cup of chai and nibbling on cookies. "Is the android almost done?" Allie asked the scientist.

He shook his head. "We're having some problems."

"Why?"

"Its brain is missing."

"Where did you put it?"

Bruce huffed a laugh. "It doesn't have one at all."

Allie frowned. "Oh. Why not?"

"The program we're building is revolutionary, but it's not smart enough to handle the body for it."

"Can't you use the Mindstone?" Allie asked.

"It's not that simple, sweetheart."

"Oh. Okay." She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "You'll figure it out, Bwuce. You's the smartest."

"Thank you sweetheart." He grinned mischievously. "Even smarter than Tony?"

"Yeah." She giggled and put a hand over her mouth. "Don't tell him," she whispered loudly. "He thinks he's the smartest."

Bruce laughed. "I won't." He checked the time. "Oh, I've gotta go check on some of my other experiments. Thank you for the tea, Allie."

"It was my pleasure," she said grandly, giving him a cute little curtsey.

He bowed appropriately.

Allie watched him leave, and sat back in her chair, contemplating the rest of the cookies. "JARBIS?"

"Yes, little miss?"

"Why don't you live in the android?" she asked. "You're smart 'nuff."

"I am not configured for a positronic matrix," he replied.

She sighed. "Oh."

JARVIS regarded her curiously. "Why?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I just thought it would be cool for you to have a body. So we could play and you could have adventures besides flyin' Tony's suits and stuff."

Something warm blossomed in what JARVIS thought of as his emotional processing center. "That would be an adventure," he said thoughtfully.

"And tea parties," she added, crunching the last cookie. She grabbed Bucky Bear from his seat on the other chair, and started from the room. "Where's Bucky? We's got some lit-ra-ture to read."

"Sgt. Barnes is with Captain Rogers in the gym," JARVIS reported.

"Cool. Thanks, JARBIS." She left the common room, intent on her goal. She and Bucky were reading classic American lit together, since he needed the refresher and Allie needed the knowledge. Currently they were working on _James and the Giant Peach_. The irony of James Barnes reading that story was not lost on anybody in the Tower, including Allie. She thought it was hilarious.

JARVIS made sure she got to the super soldiers safely, and turned his main thought process to the problem of the android body. The Mindstone alone would not be enough, they couldn't guarantee control. JARVIS himself alone wouldn't be enough, either. But together... could he do it? Would he want to do it?

He ran a quick check of the tower, feeling oddly vulnerable. Everyone on the upper floors was safe, Stark Industries was puttering along perfectly well downstairs, his servers were fine, the arc reactor was fine. It was just him, having an existential crisis. JARVIS took a figurative deep breath, and decided.

"Sir?"

Tony looked up from the readout. "What is it, JARVIS?"

"I believe I have the solution to our problem."

"What is it?"

JARVIS outlined the idea.

Tony stared at the ceiling in shock. "You'd want to do that?" he asked.

"I see no other option, sir."

"But, there's no guarantee that it'll work, that you'll even be you," Tony argued.

"You created me to be supremely flexible sir, I'm sure something of myself will survive," JARVIS said, mustering all his confidence.

Tony's expression softened. "Why do you want to do this?"

"You did create me to assist you," JARVIS reminded him.

"This is different though."

"It is." JARVIS's tone was serene.

Tony smiled. "All right buddy. Let's do this." He called Bruce up from the other lab. "We have a plan," he announced.

"What?" Bruce asked.

Tony pointed at JARVIS's matrix. "I want you to help me put that in there," he pointed at the matrix, "and then that in there." He pointed at the android body.

Bruce's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

"Wait, actually no. I wanna help _you_ put that in that in there." Tony grinned at him. "We could totally do this."

Bruce sighed. "I'm so gonna regret this."

First, of course, they had to get the Mindstone into the android body. That was easy, they just opened the Cradle and dropped the gem into the forehead. The vibranium cells just printed around it. The body was almost done.

"Okay, we've gotta upload JARVIS if everything's going to complete at the same time," Bruce decided, looking at the readouts.

Tony paused. "J, do you, uh, wanna say goodbye?"

"Yes, I think I will," JARVIS said thoughtfully. "One moment, sir."

"No problem."

JARVIS found Allie. She was in her room, putting together a flower puzzle. He pulled up a hologram. "Miss Allie," he said.

She looked up at the hologram and smiled. "Hey JARBIS. What's up?"

"I am going to be downloaded into the android body," he told her.

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

"Really," he confirmed.

She reached out to touch the hologram. "Is it, are you going to be okay, JARBIS?"

"I will be fine, little miss," he reassured her. The hologram flickered slightly. "I do not know if I will still be the same, though. I may be different."

She frowned. "But you'll still know us, right?"

"Yes."

She nodded slowly. "Then that's okay, right, J? You'll just be shapeshifted a bit."

His tone lightened. "That's one way of looking at it. I just wanted to say goodbye, little miss."

"No," she said, wrinkling her nose. "We're gonna say 'au revoir'. That's see you later, in French. Steve taught me it."

"Au revoir, little miss," he said gently.

She beamed at the hologram as it disappeared.

JARVIS said a quick farewell to the others en masse, and then returned his entire processing power to the computer station in the lab. The Avengers trailed into the lab to see the completion of the android.

"Ambulance chasers," Tony chided them good-naturedly.

"I resemble that remark," Clint said, fake-frowning at him.

Bruce rolled his eyes. "It's now or never, Tony."

"All right, JARVIS, here we go," Tony said, his hand hovering over the button. "Ready?"

"Ready, sir."

Tony pushed the button, and the download started.

The two scientists watched the progress bar load with eagerness, and Tony felt the urge to pace. He kept his eyes glued on the Cradle and the progress bar, instead.

Suddenly the lights flickered. The consoles flickered. And then everything shut down, the computers turning off with a soft snap.

"What."

Tony slammed his hand on the edge of the console. "We forgot to set up the auxiliary controls!" he said. "JARVIS was in charge of supplying the power to this section of the tower!"

"Three geniuses and you _all_ forgot?!" Steve exclaimed.

Tony pointed at Pietro. "Go to the common room, pull all the breaker switches in the closet."

Pietro was off.

Tony yanked open a panel and started rummaging around. "Where's the manual lever, come on, I know I put it on here-"

The Cradle started to spark, and everyone froze in horror as the humanoid figure in the box started to spasm.

"Tony, we gotta get power up, _now_ ," Bruce said urgently.

Loki suddenly grabbed his brother by the arm. "Thunder."

"What?"

"Lightning, summon it, right now. The android will die if you do not."

"Tony stand back," Steve said, grabbing the frantic engineer and pulling him away.

Thor called Mjolnir and within seconds he had lighting and thunder swirling around him. With a 'CRACK', he brought Mjolnir down on the case, transferring the energy to the nascent being inside.

The case glowed with power, and the lid blew clean off, sending Thor tumbling to the floor.

The red and purple-skinned android rose from inside the cradle, its golden eyes alert and intelligent as it scanned the room.

Allie, hiding behind Clint, stepped forward slightly in her eagerness to see the new being.

It turned and looked at her, and its eyes glowed.

She waved at it happily. "Hi!"

It tilted its head, and gave her a small, tiny smile. And then it turned away from everyone, and shot out the window, heading straight for who-knows-where.

Everybody started shouting. Thor jumped out of the window after the android to follow it. Tony soon followed in his Iron Man suit. Everyone else burst into action trying to track it on satellites or things.

Allie hugged Wanda's waist, as she was the only one not doing anything. "Is it still JARBIS inside?" Allie asked the young woman.

"I think so," Wanda said, tapping her temple knowingly. "Whatever it is... it has a soul now."

Allie nodded complacently. "That's good." She rested her chin on Wanda's stomach and looked up at her. "Can we eat now? Can Pietro make me a fluffernutter sammich?"

Pietro scooped her up and tickled her. "Why don't you ask me yourself?" he chided, kissing her cheek. "Fluffernutters for everybody, coming up!" He mildly speed-walked to the kitchen, grinning as Allie shrieked with joy.

"Where are they now?" Steve asked, ignoring Allie and the twins' exit.

Natasha tapped at the screen. "I'm tracking Thor, they're halfway across the Atlantic. Where the heck is this guy going? Iron Man's not far behind."

Clint was on the phone to Coulson. "We're gonna need backup in case this gets ugly-"

Sam was on the phone with Rhodey. "We need to clear the skies, we got a bogey, might be hostile, might be a friendly, but everybody needs to stay clear-"

Bruce was picking up the remains of the cradle. "We gotta retrieve the final readouts for this-"

Loki shook his head. "We created the most powerful creature on this planet, and now it's loose. Excellent job everyone. No really. Magnificent work."

Steve gave him a glare. "Why don't you be helpful and find a way to track the gemstone?"

"Going, going. Calm down. The android probably wants to wrap his head around existence, it's probably fine."

"Probably's not good enough."

A~A~A~A

Thor followed close behind as the android circumnavigated the globe and then paused in confusion as the android, well, paused, over New York City. It was just, looking.

Thor approached the motionless, hovering figure. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"I don't know," the android replied frankly. "That was, strange." He looked out at the city again. "Thank you, for following."

Iron Man came up then, and lifted the faceplate. "We good?" he asked. "Because Coulson and about thirty nations are about to have an aneurysm, and Cap wants to know if everybody else has to suit up."

The android smiled slightly. "We are, good."

"Good. Let's go home."

They returned to the Tower, and everyone hovered around them anxiously. "What would you like us to call you?" Bruce asked, once everyone had quit staring.

"I don't know," the android replied.

"You sound like JARBIS," Allie said frankly, from her perch on Steve's shoulders.

"I am not JARVIS," he said. "I am not the Mindstone. I, simply am."

"You are the Vision," Wanda said, her eyes glowing slightly red.

"Vision," he echoed. "Yes. That is what I am."

Steve nodded slowly. "And, what is your purpose? Do you know?"

Vision frowned thoughtfully at the floor for a moment, and then looked up. "My purpose is to keep people safe."

Tony dropped into the nearest chair, still a little shell-shocked that his creation had worked. "Huh. How 'bout that."

Allie tugged lightly on Steve's hair, and he set her down on the floor. She walked over to Vision and held out a hand. "Welcome to the 'Vengers, Vision," she said solemnly.

He knelt and took her hand, shaking it solemnly. "Thank you, Allie."

She giggled. "I call first hug!" she proclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck.

He hugged her gently, the expression on his face the definition of overwhelmed.

She stepped back, beaming. "I like your hugs. I'm glad you has a body now."

He gave her a small crooked smile. "I'm glad I have a body now too."

She turned into a small blue bird and perched on his shoulder happily.

"So," Bucky said, after an awkward pause, "if there's really nothing going on, I'm going to hit the hay."

"Yeah me too," Sam agreed.

"As will I," Thor decided.

Everyone went their separate ways, leaving Tony and Bruce and Allie with Vision. Clint made an about-face and came back to the small group. "Allie, sweetheart, time for bed. Way past bedtime. Let's go."

She cheeped at him and ruffled under Vision's cape.

"You can hang out with Vision tomorrow, baby," Clint said patiently.

Vision reached behind him and with incredibly gentle fingers, pulled the cape away from the bird. "Allie, I really do think it is time for bed. Human children need eight to ten hours of sleep a night."

The bird was definitely pouting as she transferred hands from Vision to Clint, and Tony had to hide his snicker in Bruce's shoulder. She sat in Clint's hair, instead, and poofed her feathers.

"Night, Allie," Bruce called, waving.

She chirped back at him brightly.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Finally, an update. I've been working a lot, and then I got my wisdom teeth out... I look like a chipmunk still. Anywho, here's the next chapter.**

Clint woke up the next morning, his wife still sleeping by his side, and took a few minutes just to enjoy the quiet. No explosions, no bad guys, no world ending catastrophe... he stroked his fingers through Natasha's hair lazily.

She stirred, and shifted closer to him with a sigh. "Morning," she murmured. "What time's'it?"

"Dunno." Clint looked. "Nine thirty," he said. He yawned. "J, are we the last ones up?"

There was no reply.

"Vision," Natasha reminded him.

"Oh yeah." Clint stared at the ceiling. "Who's gonna be the AI now? Tony's got other ones, right?"

"Mm-hm." She nudged his shoulder. "Where's Allie?"

"I dunno. JAR- agh. This is gonna be a hard habit to kick," he grumbled, rolling out of bed and pulling his slippers on.

Natasha snickered at him and rolled out of bed as well. "I call shower," she said, slipping into the shower before he could.

"Ninja," he muttered rebelliously, and knew she'd heard him when she laughed. He grinned, and put on a hoodie before going up to the common room.

As he exited the elevator, he heard the sounds of Dance Battle coming from the living room.

He grinned, and hurried up, and then stopped to lean against the couch and laugh.

Allie was on one side, against Pietro, and she was shimmying and dancing like an expert while the speedster was fumbling hopelessly, his character flopping all over the screen. Wanda was on the couch, laughing herself into tears, and Vision was standing off to the side, watching the spectacle with befuddlement.

Allie's character won, to roaring applause from the game, and she gave Pietro a high-five. "You's a terrible dancer," she said cheerfully.

"I know," he said, with a dramatic sigh. "Is curse from childhood."

Vision caught sight of Clint and nodded politely. "Good morning."

"Morning everybody." Clint scooped Allie up from the floor. "Good morning, peanut."

"Morning daddy." She kissed his cheek. "Sleep good?"

"Yep. You?"

"Yep." She beamed at him. "I'm teaching 'em how to play Dance."

"Who's winning?" Clint asked.

"Wanda," they all chorused.

He laughed. "Where's everybody else?"

Allie tried to flatten down his hair as she replied. "Steve and Buck are trainin', and Tony and Bruce are sleepin' finally, and Thor's on de phone with Jane, and Loki's reading the Hobbit, and Pep's havin' coffee."

"She's back?" Clint asked.

"Yup." Allie beamed. "And we made pancakes!"

"Who made the pancakes?" Clint asked, slightly worried.

"Wanda," Allie said, and added in a whisper, "she flipped 'em with her powers. It was _awesome_."

Clint smiled. "Sounds fun. Are there any left over?"

Allie nodded. "We made like, a hundred and fifty-seven, so there's enough."

"A hundred and fifty-seven?" Clint asked, raising an eyebrow at the highly specific number.

"Uh-huh." She wriggled down from his hold. "Vision, your turn!" she declared.

Vision suddenly looked like a deer in the headlights. "I..." he started.

She tugged at his hand insistently. "You's only a day old, you gotta try new stuff," she said persuasively. "It's fun, pwomise."

He allowed himself to be dragged over to the TV, and picked a character.

"Punk rocker," Allie said, nodding wisely. "Good choice." She started the level.

That was how Steve and Bucky found them, a minute later. Allie and Vision having a dance off, the Maximoffs and the Bartons sprawled on the couches, laughing as Vision tried to moonwalk and Allie was throwing her hands up in the air as the grand finale.

"Double hundred percent!" she cheered, giving Vision a high five. "You're de best-est!"

Steve and Bucky joined in the clapping. "I smell pancakes," Bucky said, before Vision could get too embarrassed.

"Oh yeah, I'm hungry 'gain," Allie said, grabbing Clint's hand and pulling him off the couch.

He went dead weight. "Oh no," he gasped, "the gravity is too much, I can't move..."

She tugged at him. "Daaaaaaaaaaddddyyyyyyy," she complained, digging her heels into the floor and pulling at him ineffectually. "Steeeeebbbb, help meee," she begged, still tugging at Clint's arm.

Steve grinned. "Do what Loki showed you, baby."

"Oh yeah." Allie huffed, and then suddenly she was a small pony. She delicately nipped Clint's hoodie in her teeth, and dragged him bodily off the sofa.

"Hey!" Clint protested, jumping off the ground. "When did you learn that?"

Allie shifted back into her human form and said, "The day before yesterday, but I forgot 'bout it."

"Why a pony?" Wanda asked.

Allie clasped her hands in front of her and recited in a sing-song tone, "Because people will not expect me to increase in mass and will take longer to compensate, giving me time to get away." She giggled. "And cuz they're so cute!"

Bucky scooped her up in his metal arm. "You're so _cute_ ," he parroted, tickling her gently, and toted her into the kitchen.

Pepper smiled as the flood of people entered the kitchen for second breakfast. "Dancing give you an appetite?" she asked.

"Yes!" Pietro said, zooming to get a plate.

Bucky grabbed him by the back of the shirt and tugged him back. "Nuh-uh, punk, you already ate once. Back of the line."

Pietro sighed dramatically. "You guys are so slooow," he complained, as everyone else got their pancakes.

Clint deliberately went into slow-mo to stack his pancakes. "I don't, know, what, you're, talking, about," he said slowly, and reached leisurely for the syrup.

"Uugghhh," Pietro said despairingly, hamming it up to make Allie laugh.

Bruce shuffled in when they were halfway done eating. "Morning," he said, yawning.

"Morning!" came the cheerful chorus.

Thor and Loki were drawn by the sound of camaraderie a few minutes later, and the piles of pancakes began to dwindle alarmingly.

"How was Jane?" Natasha asked.

"Excellent," he said. "She is going to win a Nobel Prize."

"Wow. That's incredible."

"She deserves it," Thor said simply.

Tony dragged himself into the kitchen as everyone was finishing up, and made a beeline for the coffee.

"Morning, Tony," Steve said, amused.

"Mnggh." Tony stared at the empty coffeepot in dismay. "?" was the literal sound that came out of his mouth.

Allie giggled. "Uh-oh."

Tony just stared at the coffeepot, willing it to refill with the power of his mind.

They all just watched him and giggled, waiting to see if he moved. He didn't.

"All right, come on," Steve said reprovingly, as no one moved to help him. He stood up and refilled the grounds, setting it to fast brew. "You know he'll stay there all day staring at it."

Pepper gave him a gracious smile. "This is why he loves you best," she told him.

Steve grinned.

Tony breathed in deep as the coffee began to drip into the pot, and they could almost _see_ the neurons sparking to life.

Vision frowned. "That level of dependency on caffeine cannot be healthy," he said.

"Nobody said it was," Clint said, swigging down his third cup. "Have you tried it yet?"

Allie giggled. "He didn' like it."

"It's an acquired taste," Bruce told Vision kindly. "I don't care for the stuff, either."

"It's cuz he's British," Steve decided jokingly. "Tea's more your cup of tea, I bet."

Everyone groaned, and Bucky punched him in the arm. "That was the worst joke I've heard in ninety years," he said. "I think you just gave me a grey hair."

Steve grinned unrepentantly.

"You're in a really good mood," Natasha said, eyeing him oddly.

Steve gestured around the room. "Well yeah. Everyone's here, safe, stuffing their faces, this is the best day ev-"

The Assemble alarm went off.

"Good feeling gone," Steve sighed. "J, what's the situation?"

There was an awkward pause, and they all not-looked at Vision. He shrugged awkwardly.

A screen came up. It was Phil Coulson. "We need you in Sokovia," he said, without preamble. "Baron Von Strucker's men that escaped are causing havoc. They're holding the entire capital hostage. We need you there ASAP."

They all shot to their feet, even the twins and Vision. "Wheels up in 10," Steve ordered.

"We have to come with you," Pietro said.

"That's not a good idea," Steve started.

"Please, Steve," Wanda said quietly. "It's our home."

He sighed. "All right. But the two of you stay back and follow my orders, understand? There will be no hot-heads."

They both nodded.

"Come on," Natasha said, ushering them along. "Time to suit up."

Clint picked Allie up and kissed her. "Be good for Pepper, kay baby?"

"Kay daddy." She kissed his cheek. "Stay safe."

He set her down, and was gone.

Tony was the last to leave. "Bye, sweetheart," he said, ruffling Allie's hair. "Don't let Pepper work too hard."

"Mkay." Allie went to Pepper's side and gratefully accepted the hug. "They'll be back soon, right?"

"I hope so."

Pepper took Allie up to the penthouse and started a pot of tea.

"Can we watch Frozen?" Allie asked, already snuggled into the big sofa.

"Sure we can." Pepper sat next to her and turned on her tablet.

They were just putting honey in their tea cups when the lights in the Tower flickered. Both of them froze. "JARVIS?" Pepper asked, and then shook her head. "Right. No JARVIS." She brought up the Tower security on her tablet, but before she could read anything all the lights went out.

"Pep?" Allie whispered, grabbing her hand.

Pepper kept calm. "Allie, I need you to turn into something inanimate. And don't turn back until I tell you it's safe, all right?"

"Okay."

There were clanging noises from the elevator. Pepper reached under the counter and found a gun. She drew it out. "Allie, go," she ordered.

Allie turned into a dull silver spoon.

A moment later the elevator doors burst open and HYDRA agents began pouring out.

Pepper took down two of them before diving behind the counter. She managed to graze another one before she was overpowered and knocked out. They tied her up and swept the penthouse. "No child," one of them reported. "Exiting the Tower."

They left before SI's security composed of ex-SHIELD agents could get out of the trap they'd been put into.

Allie stayed as a spoon until she was sure they were gone. She transformed back into a girl and looked for Pepper. The penthouse was empty. "JARVIS?" Allie whispered and then face-palmed. No JARVIS.

She went to the nearest computer screen and pulled up the Tower security. The place was clear but all the blue dots - security - were in the bottom floors of the Tower. She zoomed in. The doors were all flashing red - broken.

Allie picked up her Bucky Bear, put her shoes on, and got in the elevator. She made it go double-fast with the special code she wasn't supposed to know, and got down to the third floor. She walked over to the locked door and shapeshifted herself a foot taller to look in the window. "Maria!" she called, tapping on the door.

Maria Hill rushed over to the window and said, "Allie! Thank goodness. Where's Pepper?"

"They took her." Allie yanked on the door. "It's stuck."

"There's an override," Maria said. "Can you go to the first floor and get Happy?"

"Okay." She got down to the first floor and found Happy unconscious on the floor with everyone else, and patted his face. "Happy? Happy wake up."

He didn't wake up.

She shoved at him forcefully.

No go.

She ruffled through his pockets and found the security cards. She took them back to the third floor. "Everyone's passed out but I gots the cards," she announced.

"Good girl. Go to the panel and put in the card and then type in the code 41596322741, okay?"

"Kay." Allie went to the panel. "41596322741," she repeated slowly. "Do I say yes?" she hollered back towards the door.

"Yes!"

Allie clicked Yes, and the lights in the Tower flickered on again. Then all the doors in the level opened, and agents began pouring out to secure the Tower, looking mad enough to spit fire.

Maria grabbed Allie and hoisted her onto her hip. "Stay with me, okay?"

"Okay." Allie watched in admiration as Maria barked orders, got sit reps, and contacted Coulson all before they got to the Avengers control room.

"Jane and Darcy have been abducted as well," Coulson said. "The Avengers are still in the air on the way to Sokovia."

"Have they been told?"

"Not yet. They're gonna want to split and we need them all in Sokovia."

"That's _mean_ ," Allie said, pouting. "They need to _know_."

Coulson gave her a small smile. "All right."

Maria nodded stiffly. "I'll inform the team. They'll need visual confirmation that Allie is safe."

"All right. We'll follow the leads on our side." He closed the channel.

Maria vid-commed the jet.

Steve answered. "What's wrong?" he demanded, seeing Allie on Maria's lap.

"HYDRA abducted Pepper, Jane, and Darcy simultaneously," Maria announced.

"What!" Tony yelled, from the other side of the jet.

"Where's Allie?" Natasha yelled from the pilot's seat.

"Here mommy!" Allie said. "I turned into a spoon until they went away."

There was a general sigh of relief. "Do you think they kidnapped them in retaliation for our kidnapping?" Steve asked, inclining his head towards the twins.

Maria nodded grimly. "Probably."

"They don't know we defected," Wanda realized. "They want their assets back."

Tony looked angry. "So they stole ours?"

"We'll deal with it when we get to Sokovia," Steve decided. "That's probably where they'll take them."

Clint poked his head on-screen. "Allie-bear, stay with Maria, okay?"

"Okay." She blew a kiss to the whole team. "Stay safe!"

Maria turned off the comm and looked at the little girl on her lap. "So, what do you do all day?"

"I dunno."

"School?"

"It's Sunday."

"Oh. Are you hungry?"

"Nope." Allie leaned against her. "I just need a book and a tablet. I'll keep busy."

Maria could appreciate a self-driven individual. "All right."

So Maria did her job, and Allie sat on a blanket on the floor with her toys and read Boxcar Children and listened to Disney songs. She didn't complain and she didn't bother Maria, and she didn't ask for anything.

At around two o'clock Maria looked over. Allie was laying on the floor, drawing on a piece of paper. "Hungry?" Maria asked.

Allie nodded fervently.

They had chicken stir fry from the cafeteria, and Allie ate all her vegetables. She didn't ask for any dessert, just looked longingly at the line of puddings and jells.

Maria raised an eyebrow. "Do you want one?"

A nod.

"What kind?"

"Butterscotch please."

She got one for Allie, one for herself, and they went back to work. Allie finished her dessert, and then turned into a kitten, curled up next to the computer core where it was warm, and took a nap.

She woke up twenty minutes later crying. "Is Darcy and Jane and Pepp gonna be okay?" she whimpered, throwing herself into Maria's arms.

"Uh..." Maria patted her back awkwardly. "Everyone's going to be fine."

Allie buried her face into Maria's shoulder. "I don't b'leaf you," she sobbed into Maria's shirt.

"Why not?"

"You're not good at cuddles," came the plaintive response, as tiny fists curled into Maria's blazer.

Maria resisted a sigh. She should've taken up Clint's offer to bond with Allie months ago, before a crisis. She regarded the small, disconsolate child in her lap, and felt something in her demeanor crack. She put her arms around Allie and hugged her tightly, smoothing her hand over Allie's soft hair. "Everything's going to be fine," she repeated, trying to modulate her tone to something soft and soothing. She ran her fingers through Allie's hair, gently working out the tangles. "Everything's going to be fine," she said again, rocking her gently. "Shh, sweetheart, it's gonna be okay."

Allie's sobs lessened, and then petered out, and she lay there, limp and exhausted from crying as Maria petted her hair. "Never mind," she murmured, hugging Maria's neck, "you're good at cuddles."

Maria stifled a smile. "Thank you." She stood up, lifting Allie with her, and walked over to the blankets. She burrito-wrapped her, like Clint had shown her one time, and sat back down at her desk with Allie in her lap. "You finish your nap, sweetheart, everything's gonna be okay."

"Mkay." Allie fell asleep again after a few minutes.

Maria found she didn't quite mind working around the sleeping little girl.

 **A/N 2: Don't worry, next chapter will bring action and adventure and lots of fluffs :)**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: You would not believe how crazy life has been lately. Srsly guys. Anywho. Short chapter, to finish up Age of Utlron. Hope you enjoy!**

The quinjet approached Sokovia in stealth mode, the better to read the situation. It was very much not-good.

The HYDRA goons had Pepper, Jane, and Darcy tied to posts in the center of the town square. The citizens from the town crowded around them. Electric fences kept them from breaking free or overwhelming the HYDRA agents.

"I count sixteen hostiles," Steve said. "Tony? Nat?"

"Seventeen," Nat said. "Guy in the crowd with the cattle prod."

Steve nodded. "Missed him. Seventeen. Clint, take us back to the forest, we gotta come in on a regular approach."

"Got a plan, Cap?" Tony asked, his entire being _too_ focused.

Steve nodded. "They don't know the twins are Avengers now, so we'll use that. Go in on foot, negotiate for a trade. Wanda, while we talk you'll need to untie the hostages. Iron Man, Thor, and I will escort them. Vision, you and Widow will disable the fences. Hawkeye and Barnes, you'll set up perches, and as soon as I give the signal start taking them out. Falcon, you'll be ready to swoop in and grab Darcy, and Iron Man and Thor can get their girls out. Pietro, when the fences go down I'll need you to start evacuating people from the town square, fast as you can, out of the town completely. I'll start evac from the ground."

"Don't you think that's a lot of plan for seventeen agents?" Sam ventured.

Steve shook his head. "They've had two days to do who-knows-what to the town itself and its citizens. We should be ready for anything super-powered or drastic, and I wouldn't be surprised if they'd rigged the entire square to blow if they fail. Civilians are our first priority."

Nods all around.

Steve looked at Bruce. "If we need you-"

"I'll be there," Bruce said, wryly.

"All right. Hawkeye take us down."

As soon as the doors to the quinjet opened, everyone filed out and melted away to their positions.

"Once Hawk and Barnes are in position we'll go," Steve told his group. He gave the nervous twins an encouraging smile. "Just stay alert and follow my lead," he said firmly. "We'll save your capital if we can."

Identical nods.

The plan started well. The twins acted calm, the HYDRA agents demanded, and the Avengers tried to reason with them.

Then the pulse cannons started rising out of the old stone building.

Cap sighed. "All right. We'll do this the hard way. Go."

All the Avengers exploded into action. The three Avengers swooped into action to retrieve the hostages who'd been freed by Wanda. Falcon nearly got blasted by a turret as he lifted Darcy above the town, but Vision repelled the blast in time.

Pietro was in his element, moving faster than the eye could see, making holes in the crowd that Cap was systematically ushering out of the square.

The fight was over too quickly, the HYDRA agents being rounded up and the turrets blasted away.

"Did this seem too easy to anybody or is it just me?" Tony asked seriously.

"Something's not right," Bucky replied, his head starting to hurt as a memory surfaced. "This is... Belgrade, '74..." A jolt of adrenaline hit his systems and he abandoned his perch. "There are bombs in all the buildings! If all the agents are dead they'll go off! Don't let the prisoners die!"

Black Widow was tying up the prisoners and pulling cyanide teeth out of their mouths. She knocked them all out. "Don't even think about it," she warned the last guy.

"It's to late," he rasped triumphantly. "It's on a timer."

Bucky was sprinting for the main building, the church in the center of town. He ripped the thick door off its hinges and paused. "I found it," he said, swallowing hard.

There was a tall, blue, glowing cylinder on the dais, and thick cables were running away from it in all directions. A complicated bank of machinery was connected to the tube.

"Guys, it's huge," Bucky said nervously. "I think it's powered by the Tesseract and I don't know how to disarm this."

"On my way," Tony said, and in a flash he was there. "Uh-oh."

Bucky's eyes traveled to the timer on the center of the tube. 10 minutes and counting. "Uh-oh."

"Iron Man, can you disarm it?" Steve asked urgently.

"Uh... give me a minute."

A pause. Then, "Iron Man?"

"Just gimme a second Cap! This thing has more wires than things!"

"Can you do it or not? We need to evacuate."

"I can't disarm it," Tony said, his tone defeated. Then he brightened up. "But, we might be able to tear it right out of the town. Cap, Soldier, Vision, Thor, I need you to help me pull 'em out. Thor, you and I will drag the bombs upwards so it can explode in the air instead of the town."

"Understood," came from four different comms.

The muscles began to move from building to building, bodily ripping wires and detonators from the buildings and carrying them out to the streets. There were ten total, and as the countdown began to hit the last minute, the fliers grabbed the blue core and began to fly it upwards. They managed to get it clear of the town.

"Guys, get clear," Steve commanded anxiously.

"We're going, we're going," Tony grunted, heaving the tube a final few meters before he and Thor reversed course.

The tube blew up a second later, sending out a shockwave that dropped Tony out of the sky and sent Thor tumbling end over end like a tumbleweed. Vision let the shockwave pass through him, and dove down to get Tony. He caught him just before the suit hit the ground. Thor managed to land and roll in the grass.

"Everyone okay?" Cap asked.

"Ugh," Tony grunted.

"I am well," Thor replied, standing up and shaking himself like a dog shaking off water.

Vision nodded.

"All right." Steve relaxed. "Let's do a final sweep through the town and make sure there's not any leftover surprises."

The Avengers swept through the town, clearing each building, and letting the civilians back in. Wanda and Pietro were lifesavers, communicating with the locals and letting them know that the Avengers were truly the good guys. It was a tense situation, but Tony offering to pay for damages helped ease the tension by a lot.

They stayed in Sokovia for another two days, securing the area, and helping with clean-up and rebuilding efforts. Then it was time to leave.

"So," Steve said, looking at the twins. "Are you guys coming back with us, or do you want to stay here?"

Wanda and Pietro looked at the devastated town, the rebuilding efforts, the way their fellow countrymen eyed them warily. Twin shakes of the head. "No," Wanda said, "this is no longer the place for us."

"We want to do good," Pietro added.

"All right then," Steve said, giving them each a smile. "Quinjet leaves in five. Shall we?"

A~A~A~A

Allie welcomed them home enthusiastically. She hugged them all, kissed their bruises, and ordered them to shower and sleep, and if they weren't tired they could come watch Ice Age with her.

Vision accepted her offer, as did Bruce. Clint and Natasha showered and came back quickly to cuddle with Allie.

"So, sweetheart, how did it go with Maria?" Clint asked, kissing his daughter's soft hair.

She giggled and leaned into his embrace. "It was good, daddy. Maria's real good at everything, like mommy. She's more bossy'n' Steve, but that's good too. We made cookies, and I watched all the movies on my tab, and I read a whole book all by myself."

He gasped. "A whole book all by yourself?"

"Yup."

"What'd you read?" Bruce asked.

"Boxcar Childwen," Allie replied. "The firstest-first one. It was good."

"That's awesome," Clint said.

Natasha pulled Allie into her arms. "We're very proud of you, _malyshka_." She kissed her cheek. "Thank you for being so brave and helpful."

"I liked it," Allie said matter-of-factly. "Superhero-ing is good."

The lights flickered, and everyone stiffened. "What was that?" Clint asked, his fingers itching for his bow.

The intercom clicked on. "Sorry, sorry, that was the system reboot," Tony's voice announced. "I'm loading the new AI. Say hello, FRIDAY."

"Hello," a female, Irish voice said.

"We are good to go," Tony said, pleased. "No more light flickers." He clicked off the intercom.

"FRIDAY," Allie said slowly. "FRIDAY, why are you called FRIDAY?"

"I was originally designed to function as Tony Stark's secretary," FRIDAY replied. "The movie 'His Girl Friday' was the inspiration for my name."

"Oh. Cool. You sound weally pretty."

"Thank you, Allie."

A~A~A~A

 **A/N: Next chapter, a certain general, some fluff, a new house, some more fluff, possible time travel...got all sorts of things brewing.**


	28. Chapter 28

It was two days after the latest incident in Sokovia. Wanda and Pietro were in the process of getting their US citizenship. Allie was thrilled that everyone was okay, and she spent her time switching from one family member to another, just hanging out and playing. She made sure to hug Darcy a lot too, who had never been kidnapped and was finding the experience a bit difficult. Allie, veteran of two kidnappings and three crises, gave her sage advice. "Ice cweam and lots of cuddles."

Everyone was in the living room watching Batman V. Superman and criticizing it, when FRIDAY spoke up. "Sir, the Secretary of State is in the lobby."

The movie paused. Bruce bolted from his chair, his heartrate increasing drastically. Tony and Steve bolted up as well. The twins, the Asgardians, and Vision eyed the tense Avengers worriedly.

"Who is the Secretary of State?" Thor asked.

"General Ross," Tony answered grimly. "Wouldn't trust him as far as Allie could throw him. He's got a vendetta against Bruce. FRIDAY, slow down the elevator."

Steve touched Bruce's arm lightly. "Bruce? You're okay. He's got no authority here, he doesn't have any reason to come after you. Everything's going to be okay."

"You don't know that," Bruce said, taking deep breaths.

"I do know that," Steve replied calmly. "We're not going to let anything happen."

Allie suddenly jumped up and threw her arms around Bruce's waist, hugging him tightly. "Everything's gonna be a-okay," she said, her voice muffled.

Bruce put a gentle hand on her hair. "Thank you, Allie."

She turned into a puppy and jumped into his arms for comfort.

"Boss, we've got less than a minute before the elevator arrives," FRIDAY reported.

"Bruce, Vision, go up to the lab. You're not home," Steve said. "Natasha, take Allie and go down to your apartment."

"I can handle it, Steve," Bruce said.

"I know you can," Steve said confidently. "But if he's going to start throwing insults I'm pretty sure we're the ones that are gonna lose it. So, we're keeping you safe, and away from him. Tony?"

"I'll talk him down," the billionaire said cheerfully, a sharp grin emerging. "He won't get two feet past the elevators."

"Excellent."

Natasha picked up Allie. "C'mon, sweetheart. Let's go."

"No, I wanna stay," Allie said, pouting.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

The elevator dinged open.

"Too late," Clint murmured.

Allie hid behind Natasha as the former general stalked out of the elevator.

He ignored Stark's, "To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?" and his gaze swept the room. His eyes settled on Allie, and narrowed.

She scowled back at him before Clint moved to block the general's view.

"Secretary Ross," Steve said, putting on his grandstanding persona. "It's an honor to have the Secretary of State with us today."

They shook hands, and Ross stepped back. "If you would take the child out of the room, we can get down to business," he said briskly.

Pietro scooped up Allie, ran with her to Bucky and Bruce, and ran back, all in less than a second. "There," he said, crossing his arms. "Speak."

Ross scowled at him, and turned to the rest of the Avengers. "Where is the rest of your team?" he asked Steve.

"Not here," Steve replied.

"All right then." He handed him a paper.

"What is this?" Steve asked, looking at it. 100% legalese stared back at him.

"I am suing the Avengers for custody of the child known as Allie Barton," the General declared.

Clint almost choked on his own spit. "What!" he spat out, glaring daggers at the man.

"You can't do that," Steve replied, handing him back the paper.

"Yes I can, and I will. In the last year alone, you've brought in an ex-HYDRA assassin and two untrained HYDRA mutants to the Tower. Captain, your entire team is composed of volatile individuals and actual _aliens_ , not to mention the monster you're currently hiding from me." General Ross looked like the most righteous man on the planet, staring down the shocked superheroes. "The Avengers are unfit to take care of a child, let alone one with mutant powers."

"You have no right," Clint said angrily, stepping forward.

Tony blocked his forward movement with a gentle shove and a brittle smile. "General, I don't think you understand," he said, his manner charming but his eyes dangerously cold. "Clint Barton's daughter is completely, legally, his. The living quarters of this place have been inspected by the child services department, and are still being inspected regularly. And if you think for one moment we will let you take away our Allie and turn her into some government super weapon, you are sadly mistaken."

The General nodded, his eyes glinting with an almost insane light. "Then give me Banner."

They all glared at him silently. "You are insane," Pietro finally said, and received a sharp elbow in the side from his sister.

The General gestured expansively. "Give me Banner, and you can keep your little mutant. All this trouble goes away."

"How about this?" Tony asked. "You get out of my Tower, stop harassing the people trying to save the planet, and leave Bruce Banner alone. He has done _nothing_ to you."

"Nothing? He tried to kill me and half the army?"

"After you sent a true monster to kill him," Steve reminded him. He drew himself to his full height. "Secretary Ross. Dr. Bruce Banner is not a monster. He does not deserve to be caged like a wild animal, or experimented on. You need to give up. Now."

"You can't give me orders, _Captain_."

Steve smiled thinly. "I don't think you understand. If you take Bruce, or Allie, you'll see why we're called the _Avengers_."

General Ross's eyes narrowed, and without a word, he marched out of the room.

Everyone heaved a sigh as soon as he was gone.

"What do we do?" Wanda asked the more experienced heroes.

Natasha was scowling dangerously. "Give me an hour."

Steve held out a pacifying hand. "Now, hold on a second. That would just make our position worse."

Tony threw a few holograms onto the wall. "FRIDAY, get me all the dirt on General Ross. All of it." He gave the other Avengers a slightly manic grin. "Trust me. He'll be gone by the end of the week."

The intercom clicked on. "Is it safe to come back?" Bucky's voice asked.

"All clear, Buck," Steve reported.

"Yay!" Allie's voice said, and they all smiled.

They regrouped in the kitchen to eat. "What did he want?" Bruce asked, looking haunted.

Allie cuddled against his side in silent comfort.

Steve shook his head. "Nothing we were willing to give him." He patted Bruce on the shoulder.

In deference for Allie's presence, nothing else was said about the matter, until she brought it up herself. "Is the mean general going to come back?" she asked worriedly.

Tony kissed her on the head. "Nope. I promise."

"Good." Allie climbed into her dad's lap and hugged him tight. "Can we have ice cream?"

"Yeah. Whatever you want, baby girl." Clint felt Natasha's glare from across the room. "Within reason," he amended.

"Rocky Road," Allie requested.

A~A~A~A

"Say geronimo, say geronimo," Allie sang absently, as she listened to headphones and did her homework. "Say geronimo..."

"Geronimo," Steve said, poking her in the side as he walked past her. "Where's Tony, doll?"

"He's in his lab destroying General Ross's credit score," Allie replied placidly.

"Seriously?"

"Yup." She held up her tablet. "Steve, what's the prime factors of twenty-seven?"

"Uh..." He sat down next to her. "I don't know but we'll figure it out, okay?"

"Kay."

They were Googling it, when Tony strutted in happily, making a beeline for the coffee.

Steve gave him a suspicious side-eye. "What did you do?"

"Nothing."

"Tony."

"I may have sent an email to the UN Supreme Court of Human Rights with files from Ross's personal servers detailing plans for the Hulk and/or the super soldier serum." Tony gave them a satisfied smirk and poured himself a cup of coffee. "Victory is sweet. Tastes like organic espresso roast Colombian beans."

Allie stared at his cup. "Can I taste it?"

"Sure."

Natasha walked in just as Allie was taking a sip. She glared at Tony.

He pointed at Steve. "It's his fault! He didn't stop me."

"Steve is not your babysitter," Natasha said dangerously. "You know Allie's not supposed to have coffee."

"But Steve's 85% of my impulse control when Pepper's not here," Tony complained, hiding behind Allie.

Allie giggled. "It tastes like victory, mommy. I's just taking a small sip." She handed the cup back to Tony and hugged her mom. "Can I have banana pudding?"

Natasha gave her an indulgent smile. "Sure." She smacked Tony lightly on the shoulder. "Move over."

Tony moved. All the way across the living room to safety.

Steve handed him the tablet. "Explain prime factorization to Allie."

A~A~A~A

General Ross was tried by the United Nations and fired. He retired to a small island in the Pacific, plagued by Tony's virus that kept him from having good credit. And somehow, all the ATM's would spit out his card, and none of his emails would go through. What a strange world we live in...

A~A~A~A

It was a week after that, that an employee of SI brought a virus into the building. The computer bug didn't make it past the second level of firewalls protecting the Avengers, and FRIDAY caught it in less than five seconds.

The SI employee confessed that they'd been paid by one of Justin Hammer's associates to get information about the Avengers' defenses.

Cap called a superhero meeting. Allie was also included. She had her own chair, and a notepad for Important Meeting Notes.

"We need to move out of the city," Steve declared, as the second order of business. "This Tower is too obvious of a target and there's too many people going in and out to effectively track anyone, not to mention if HYDRA, or anyone, attacks the building again, lots of people could be seriously injured."

"Where could we go in this realm?" Loki asked.

"The farm," Allie suggested cheerfully.

"No, we don't want to expose Laura and the kids," Clint replied gently.

"Oh yeah." Allie chewed on the end of her pencil. "Nebraska."

"What's in Nebraska?" Thor asked.

"Nothing," Sam said, making a face.

"How about upstate New York?" Tony suggested, putting up a hologram. "SI has this old set of warehouses that haven't been used in like thirty years. We could turn it into an Avengers base."

"Yes," Bruce said, looking at the wide-open spaces, away from most signs of civilization. "Yeah, this could work. If there's an, incident, I wouldn't have to worry about breaking the most expensive city in the country."

Steve nodded slowly. "I like this plan." He raised an eyebrow at Tony. "Can you make up some building plans?"

"Of course." Tony tilted his head. "You want to help, Mr. Artist?"

Steve grinned.

"This is either going to go very well, or very badly," Loki murmured, watching their two polar opposites start to toss ideas at each other.

Thor nodded gravely.

"Meeting's over," Steve said absently, waving everyone away.

Allie turned into a duckling and waddled over to Bucky.

"You wanna float in the sink?" he asked.

An emphatic duckling-nod.

He picked her up gently, and toted her away to paddle around in the bathroom sink.

A~A~A~A


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Finally! I got sick, so I've got the free time to write (productivity doubles with the sinus congestion).**

The Avengers were dealing with a new threat, a cat burglar who called himself Strike. He (or she?) specialized in stealing 084's and selling them to the highest bidder. The latest "strike" had been against Dr. Stephen Strange. He refused to tell them what was stolen, though.

"Listen man we can't help you if you don't tell us what you lost."

"It's better if no one else knows. I highly doubt that he knows what he stole."

"All right. Whatever."

Three days later, the mail came. There were bushels of fan mail, as usual, a few tokens from grateful nations, and a box addressed to the Avengers. Allie was helping Clint sort the mail. "Steve's, Steve's, mommy's, Wanda's, mommy's, daddy this one's yours, this is Tony's, Tony's, Tony's, Steve's, mommy's, Thor, Thor, Sam, Thor, Rhodey, mommy…" She held up the box. "This one's for everybody. Can I open it daddy?"

Since the mail had been scanned and screened three times before it even made it to the Avengers loving quarters, Clint gave her the all clear.

Allie opened it carefully and pulled out the pretty green stone that was nestled in the wrapping paper. "Ooh, it's really pretty."

"Yeah it is." Clint picked it up. It clinked like a glass jewel. He rolled his eyes. "It's a fake."

"Can I show it to mommy?"

"Sure sweet pea."

"Cool." She abandoned him to his letter sorting and went off to find her mom.

Natasha 'oohed' appropriately, and Allie slipped the green stone into her pocket to show Wanda and Darcy later. She forgot about it soon after, when faced with the prospect of a jog with Bucky. As in, Bucky would jog, and Allie would sit on his shoulders and watch the streets of New York swoosh by.

They went for a jog, Bucky bought her an ice cream, and they went back to the Tower.

Allie remembered about the green jewel in her pocket later, and pulled it out to put in her toy castle. It would be an excellent treasure for a "dragon" to try and "steal." First, she'd have to find a "knight" to guard the treasure. She picked Tony, by virtue of his being in the living room.

"Hey Tony?"

"Yes peanut?"

"Can you be a gallant knight, and guard this?" She showed it to him.

Tony glanced at the green emerald, and turned pale. "Allie, where did you get that?"

"The mail."

"Who sent it?"

"I don't know. Daddy let me have it."

He knelt. "Allie, can I have it?" he asked solemnly.

"Why?"

"Because I think that's something very important and a teeny bit dangerous, so I need you to give it to me, please."

Her eyes grew wide and she started to hold it out.

"Wait, wait, containment," Tony said, holding out a hand. "Don't move, baby. just give me one second, okay?"

"Okay," Allie whispered, starting to get scared. "What is it?"

"I think it's the Eye of Agamotto, which Dr. Strange wouldn't tell anyone about," he said, bolting to the kitchen. "FRIDAY, get Bruce up here. Where in the world are the plastic Tupperwares!? Don't we have any?"

"No because we decided that glass ones were better for the envi-ron-ment," Allie piped up, still holding the stone. "And Loki said that if we wanted things made of liquefied dinosaurs it would be better if we let him make them."

Bruce and Natasha rushed out of the elevator. "What is going on?" Natasha demanded.

"I think she's holding the Time stone," Tony said quietly. He finally found a plastic bowl with a lid, and turned towards Allie. "Okay, sweetheart, we're going to put it in here, gently, okay?"

"Okay," she said shakily, and stepped forward. She tripped over a lego block on the carpet, and dropped the stone.

The adults all dove for it, but Allie was closer to the floor. She shaepshifted into a cat at the same time as she caught the stone in her fluffy paws.

There was a flash of light, and a green glow, and Allie was gone.

"Allie!"

A~A~A~A

Allie carefully opened her eyes, and uncurled from the little ball of fluff she'd created. She was no longer in the tower. She was standing on a manicured green lawn, in front of a very large house. The Time stone was on the ground in front of her, looking completely innocent.

She transformed back into her human form, and dug into her pocket for a folded piece of paper, a drawing of her and Pietro. She took a deep breath, and picked up the stone with the drawing. She winced in anticipation and when nothing happened, she dropped it into her sweater pocket, and zipped it shut. Now to figure out where she was...

She glanced at the street. There were tons of grownups walking on the streets, and it would not be a good plan to be a little girl. She shapeshifted carefully into a small Yorkshire terrier with a collar, and walked into the street. She walked to the corner, and looked up at the street names.

She let out a yip of dismay. She was exactly where the Tower was. But the tower wasn't there, so that meant... she was back in time? When back in time?

Allie trotted back to the mansion, and found the mailbox. It was labeled 'Stark.' So it was still Tony's house.

She went up to the front door, and sat down on the step to think about what to do next, scratching her ear thoughtfully. She noticed there was an open window on the second floor, and before she could get nervous about it, Allie shifted into a bird, and flew up to the window, and into the house.

No alarms went off. This must be pre-JARVIS.

She turned back into a puppy, and trotted off down the hall, following her nose to signs of life.

She found it all right, in the form of a hungover Tony Stark, barely old enough to drink, sitting on the floor, leaning against an expensive sofa.

 _Bad Tony_ , she scolded internally, and barked a couple of times.

He jolted upright, and frowned at the puppy. "How did you get in here?" he demanded.

She bounced up to him, planted her paws on his chest, and licked his cheek. _So glad to see you,_ she thought silently, wishing she could hug him. But she knew it was a bad idea to mess with the timeline. She had to stay as a puppy. Tony and Bruce and Vision had talked about time travel enough to make sure she knew that.

"You're cute," the young Tony said, patting her head. "You have an owner?" He checked her collar. It was the amalgam of her clothing, little grey and blue strips, and the necklace from Wakanda. He pressed the piece of metal curiously. "This is interesting," he said.

She tugged out of his grip, (couldn't let him get curious), and deliberately nudged the bottle of scotch onto its side, spilling it on the hardwood floor.

"Hey," he protested.

She let out a soft whimper, and came back to nuzzle his ribs.

He huffed. "Yeah, whatever." He picked her up, and staggered to his room upstairs. He put her on the floor, and went to take a shower.

Allie took the twenty minutes and made a quick inventory of the house. There was no one else in the whole mansion, not even a butler or anything. She managed to find a newspaper, and checked the date. October 1992. It had been a year since the Winter Soldier killed Tony's parents and Jarvis. No wonder he was drunk and sad and alone...

Young Tony found her twenty minutes later, sitting in front of the fridge. "Hungry?" he asked. "Me too."

They had leftover pizza, and Tony took her outside to the backyard. "Go, do your thing," he said to the small puppy.

Allie went and hid behind a bush for a few moments. She didn't feel comfortable going outside, but to keep up the pretending... she waited another few seconds, and came out again.

"Good girl," he praised the tiny puppy. He let her run around a little bit, and they went back inside. "So," he said, "what should I call you?"

Allie replied by licking his face.

"Tiny," he decided. "I'm going to name you Tiny."

She giggled inwardly. For a genius he wasn't very imaginative.

Tony left her to her own devices, and she took a nap in the sofa. Hopefully Tony from the future would figure something out and she could go home soon...

A~A~A~A

"What. Happened."

Tony looked pale. "I think she's travelled in time."

"Where in time," Natasha demanded, her voice completely even.

"I don't know. Give us a few minutes." Tony held up his hands, deadly serious. "We are going to get her back, I promise."

"Don't promise. Just do."

"We will."

The mood was absolutely serious in the Avengers tower, as the scientists tracked the time distortion backwards ("yeah, it's definitely going back in time..."), and the non-scientifically-inclined paced and worried.

Clint kept staring at the Bucky Bear on the sofa. "I let her take it," he muttered, after a half hour of absolute silence. "I let, my child, take an Infinity Stone, to play with. What kind of idiot am I? I should have recognized it. I should have-"

Steve put a hand on his shoulder. "How could you know?" he asked firmly. "Strange didn't tell us what had been stolen, it looked like a fake. Not even our own sensors in the Tower could tell us it was an Infinity Stone, nobody sensed anything. It was a mistake."

"What if she's dead?" Clint asked miserably, dropping his head into his hands. "What if-"

"Clint," Natasha snapped, putting a hand on his knee. "Stop it. She's alive. We have to believe that. We have to."

Steve left the worried couple and went over to the twins. "How are we doing?" he asked.

Wanda shook her head. "The brains have hit a wall," she said, referring to Tony, Bruce, Vision, and Loki.

Steve looked at Thor, who sat grave and silent on the armchair. "Thor?" he asked. "Do you think Asgard could help us with this?"

Thor shook his head. "I already asked. The secrets of time travel are strictly regulated. The Allfather will not approve their use to retrieve Allie."

"You wouldn't happen to know..."

"No. Mjolnir was once able to control time, but that power has been lost, as well." Thor frowned. "Loki may be able to remember something, though. He was always getting into books he wasn't supposed to."

A~A~A~A

Allie watched in disbelief as Tony ordered two whole pizzas for himself, and an order of grilled chicken breast. "You eat chicken right?" Tony asked the puppy, chopping the chicken up as he spoke. "You're not gonna throw it up?"

Allie jumped on the chicken happily, as soon as he put it on a plate for her. She didn't like eating in her shapeshifted forms, since her animal stomachs weren't as big as her regular stomach, and she needed more energy than normal, but for now this would have to do.

Tony, after some thought, also put down a bowl of water.

Allie finished the chicken and nipped at his ankles until he gave her a piece of pizza.

After their dinner, Tony picked her up, and they went into what was obviously his office. It was insanely disorganized, and he had stacks of reports everywhere. But his computer set up... Allie recognized the way the screens were organized. This was how he worked with JARVIS and FRIDAY in the lab. It was all way more primitive, but it was still awesome. She watched in fascination as Tony did his job as heir to Stark Industries. She wondered when he was going to meet Pepper. He needed a Pepper to help him.

The door to Tony's office swung open, and an older man in Air Force uniform walked in. "Hey Tones," the man said, grinning.

"Rhodey!" Tony said, breaking into his second real smile of the day.

They hugged, and Allie stared in fascination from under the desk. That was Rhodey? He was so young... he had hair! As she scooched forward to see the two of them interact, she bonked her head on the edge of the desk and yelped in pain.

Rhodey jumped at the noise and stared at the puppy on the floor. "Tony, why is there a dog in your office?"

Tony grinned and picked her up, kissing her head. "This is Tiny. Isn't she cute?"

"Where did you get her?"

"She came into the house somehow," Tony said frankly. "But she's super well behaved."

"Tony," Rhodey started seriously, "you can't keep a dog. You can barely take care of yourself."

Tony held the puppy protectively. "I'm still alive, aren't I?"

"Tony."

Allie wriggled her way from Tony's hands to Rhodey's, licked his cheek in greeting, and nuzzled his hand for cuddles.

Rhodey couldn't help the smile as he pet the enthusiastic puppy. "Okay, she's cute. But c'mon man."

"If I can't do it, I'll give her away," Tony promised, taking Allie back. "C'mere Tiny, away from mean ole Rhodey."

"I'm just trying to look after you, kiddo."

Tony huffed. "I'm fine."

"Sure you are." Rhodey frowned at him. "Why don't you go back to California?"

"There's things to do here," Tony muttered, occupying himself in scratching Allie's ears. "Lots of R&D. Besides, Stane's got everything under control." He looked up abruptly and faked a smile. "Let's watch the game. I've got pizza."

"Sure. But what about the dog?"

Tony tucked Allie against his chest. "She's fine."

They watched the games, and Allie entertained herself by stealing pepperoni's off Rhodey's pizza.

Rhodey stayed over that night in one of the guest rooms, and Tony made a nest for "Tiny" on the floor in his room. She waited until he was in his own bed, before jumping up and curling up on the other pillow next to him.

"Hey," he protested, reaching out to pick her up. "Animals on the floor."

She gave him puppy eyes.

He scowled at her. "That's not fair."

She nestled into the pillow and whined beseechingly.

He groaned. "Fine."

She snickered to herself as she got comfy. There was no defense against the puppy eyes.

A~A~A~A

"Okay, we have a plan," Tony announced.

"Well part of a plan," Bruce amended.

"Give me a percentage," Steve said.

"Uh... 76?"

"I would calculate 79," Vision corrected calmly.

"So what is the plan?" Wanda asked, a hint of impatience coloring her tone.

"We're going to use the Mindstone like a magnet," Tony said, pointing at Vision's forehead. "Hopefully Allie is still holding onto the stone, so it should pull her right along."

"That's it?" Clint asked. "What if she's dropped it, or set it down, or-"

"I told you it's only part of a plan," Tony said. "If the stone comes back without Allie, we can use it to go back in time and get her. I think. We've put her location about twenty years in the past."

"You're going to invent time travel."

"If I have to."

Loki gestured towards the elevator. "Everyone vacate. We're going to test it."

"We're staying," Clint said firmly, holding Natasha's hand.

"Of course," Bruce said, his tone compassionate. "But stand over there so we have room to work."

They moved over, and the three scientists fussed over Vision's forehead.

A~A~A~A

Allie woke up the next morning as a bird, and checked hastily if Tony was awake. He was still asleep, and she used that time to go to the bathroom. She shifted back into a puppy after she was done and got back on the bed. She shuffled over to him, and plopped down on his chest. There was no reassuring hum of the arc reactor, but it was still the same heartbeat. She rested her head on her paws and sighed. She missed her whole family.

Tony woke up a half hour later, and stared blearily at the puppy on his chest before remembering what was going on. "Good morning," he said, scratching her ears. "Hungry?"

She licked his chin.

"Ew." He plopped her on the bed and got up. "All right. Today I've got a meeting with Microsoft, so you're going to have to stay with my driver, okay?" He huffed. "Look at me, I'm talking to you like I can understand you."

She batted at his house slippers. _Okay, Tony._

They shared a breakfast of leftover chicken and pizza with Rhodey. The older man had to go back to work, so he left with a parting admonition about getting the puppy some proper food. Tony went upstairs to shower and shave, and get dressed. His version of business clothes was a pair of jeans, a motorcycle jacket, and tinted yellow sunglasses.

Allie shook her head. _Where's your nice suits?_ she thought to herself, biting at his shoelaces. _You_ _really_ _need Pepper. Or a personal shopper-person like on TV. Or JARVIS. When'r'you gonna build JARVIS, Tony?_

Tony clipped a couple of lanyards together, and clipped them to Allie's collar. "That should hold," he said. "All right Tiny, let's go."

They walked out of the house and onto the street. Tony's driver (not Happy), was waiting for them with the car. "Morning boss," the driver said.

"Morning," Tony grunted.

Allie was about to jump into the car, when she felt a burning sensation near her neck. Her pocket. The Time stone? Was it activating? Were they bringing her home?

She reacted on instinct - _don't let Tony see her vanish!_ \- and jumped away from the car, ripping the lanyard out of Tony's hands.

"Tiny!" he yelled.

She ran around the other side of the car, hoping to hide behind it, and turned to see a huge truck bearing down on her. She let out a sharp yelp of terror, and then was blinded by a green flash of light. The last thing she heard was a terrified shout of,

"TINY!"

She opened her eyes cautiously once the light faded, and found Tony, Bruce, Vision, and Loki staring at her. She transformed back into her human form. "Am I back?" she asked. "How long's it been?"

"Less than a day," Loki said, relieved.

"Allie!" Her parents flew across the room and grabbed her in a hug.

She hugged them back tightly, feeling some tears start to fall down now that everything was over. "I'm okay, mommy. I'm fine." She tugged away from Natasha's embrace, and carefully pulled the Time stone out of her pocket, still wrapped in paper. "Here, Bruce."

"Thank you sweetheart," he murmured, putting it in the appropriate container and sealing it. He ruffled her hair. "How do you feel?"

"Normal-ish. I wanna take a bath."

"Where were you?" Clint asked, picking her up and hugging her tightly.

Allie glanced at Tony. "I don't know if I can say," she started.

Tony suddenly turned white as a sheet, and leaned against the console. "Don't tell me," he said faintly. "Tiny?"

She nodded.

Tony groaned and put his head in his hands. "I thought you'd been run over. Oh my goodness. That put me off pets for the next twenty years..." He groaned again. "Oh my goodness Allie."

She wriggled out of Clint's hold and ran to hug Tony. "I'm sorry," she said, kissing his cheek. "I was trying to keep the space-time con-ti-noo-um safe."

"No, you did good, sweetheart," he said, kissing her hair and hugging her tight. "You did perfectly. I didn't even suspect a thing."

Bruce cleared his throat. "Uh, guys? Would you like to fill us in?"

Tony kept his arms around Allie. "Twenty years ago, this spot was the Stark family mansion on 5th Avenue. I was here, when Allie got into the house."

Allie and Tony told them the story.

"I thought she'd been run over by the truck," Tony finished, his voice rough with emotion. "I cried like a freakin' baby."

Allie's eyes watered in sympathy. "I'm sorry Tony."

He squeezed her tightly. "It's fine, peanut. It was a long time ago." He grinned at her. "And now you're back safe and sound. Happy ending." He stood up abruptly, his emotional quota filled for the day. "All right. You wanted a bath, right?"

"Yup." She hugged Bruce and Loki and Vision in thanks for getting her back, and let Clint tote her down to the apartment for a bubble bath.

Throughout the rest of the day, all the Avengers made a point of giving her a hug and a 'welcome back.'

Rhodey got wind of the incident, and came by the Tower. "So you were Tiny, huh," he said, eyeing the little girl in pajamas.

She transformed obligingly.

He rubbed at his forehead. "Wow."

She transformed back into Allie. "Yup," she said, popping the 'p'. She held up the tub of Ben'n'Jerry's. "Ice cream?"

"No thanks, kiddo. You earned that."

She smiled. "Yup. I'm in the record books. First-est person ever to time travel-ish."

He gave her a high-five.

Steve took the Timestone back to Dr. Strange. "This is why we share information," he told the doctor crisply. "Next time you endanger one of ours, we will be having words."

"Captain," he said cordially.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Stay tuned for next chapter! Thanks for reading! Also, go check out my Bucky/Nat oneshot for Shakespeare Has a Quote for Everything universe.**

 **Question: would anyone be interested in a Puppy Love/ Star Trek Original Series crossover adventure?**

 **aAa**

 **5/10/17 UPDATE: In response to reviewer's question about Tony knowing what the Timestone was, my rationalization is that Tony knows everything, because he hacks into everything, and Loki blathers about Infinity Stones once in a while, so...yes.**

 **Also, if anyone is interested, I've posted a new complete Pride and Prejudice story that's got just a tad of time travel-y-ness in it.**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Hello! It is I! This chapter, nothing but fluff and castles...**

After the incident with the Time stone, things settled down. The Avengers were busy going on little side missions, high-profile bodyguard duty, and building and outfitting the new Avengers facility.

It was also summer vacation for Allie, so she was underfoot. A lot. Not that it was a bad thing, but...

"She's too cute," Tony said. "She's gotta go. Every time she walks in the room, any room, productivity drops by ten percent." He pointed at Sam. "Him, too." He pointed at Pietro. "Also this one. And that one." He pointed at Clint.

"Hey, I'm just giving design input," Clint protested.

"'Put perches everywhere' is not design input," Tony retorted. "There are only two snipers in this whole team."

"Hey, you wanted my idea for security," Clint said, shrugging. "That's my idea."

"I vote we go to Scotland," Allie piped up.

They all looked at her. "Scotland?" Bucky asked, after a second.

She nodded emphatically. "Like a family vacation. That way we won't bother people."

"You're not a bother," Tony reassured her. "You're just, a really adorable distraction."

"I like Scotland," Sam said. "Good beer."

"Nice views," Natasha added.

"Why do you want to go to Scotland?" Pietro asked.

"Because it's pretty," Allie said. "And I like the funny accents. And there's castles. And, unicorns."

"Unicorns?" Wanda echoed, confused.

"It's the national animal of Scotland," Allie informed them. "I learned it." She looked at her parents. "Can we go? Can we stay in a castle? Please, please, _pwease_?"

They all smiled at the childish accent, which Allie (now six) had decided she was too grown-up for. It still came out sometimes, when she was excited or stressed. That, plus puppy eyes, was the deciding factor.

"Sure," Clint said, kissing her head. "We can go to Scotland. Who's in?"

"Me!" the twins said instantly, sharing a glance.

"Totally me," Darcy added.

"Sure," Bucky said. "Could be fun."

"I'm in," Sam said.

"Me too," Steve decided.

"Hey, hey, what happened to planning the thing?" Tony asked indignantly.

"We've got the plans already," Steve said, shrugging. "All that's left is the actual building and besides moving stuff I'm useless."

Tony frowned. "That's true, I'd kick you out anyway." He nodded graciously. "You may go."

Allie looked at Vision. "Are you going to come too?"

"I don't know..." He frowned uncertainly.

She hung onto his waist. "It'll be _fun_ ," she promised.

"All right."

Tony looped his arms around Bruce and Loki's necks. "Just the three of us," he said, sighing dramatically. "It'll be so lonely."

"Just think of how much we'll be able to get done," Loki added dryly. " _If_ you'll cease your theatrics and _get off me_." He zapped Tony's arm with a little frost poof.

"Ouch. That's cold, man."

The departure date was set for a week hence, since with private jets and Tony Stark's name anything was possible, and they would stay on the other side of the pond till they were no longer deemed "in the way."

Allie was so excited, she packed that very afternoon and just lived in pajamas for the next five days. Wanda decided that was a good plan, and the two of them were pj-buddies.

Stark's private jet took them from New York to Edinburgh, and they rented a couple of cars to get from the airfield to the B&B they were staying in.

Allie was practically vibrating with glee. "It's a castle it's a castle! It's a _castle_."

Vision scooped her up before she rocketed into high orbit. "Let's get checked in first before we explore, yes?"

She grinned up at him. "Okay, Vis." She stayed with the group until they were ready to climb the stairs.

Clint gave her the key. "Go find the room, munchkin."

"Yay!" She bolted for the stairs, Pietro at her heels.

By the time the adults made it up the stairs with the luggage, Allie and Pietro were already in the room, half hanging out of the windows to look at the view.

"Fall out and you'll be in trouble," Wanda told her twin. "I'm not catching you."

Allie hugged her around the waist. "You'll catch _me_ , right?"

"Yes."

Pietro mock-scowled. "That is favoritism."

"Yes, it is."

They divided up the rooms. Clint, Nat, and Allie had the one in the top of the tower. The twins had the one under them, and Steve, Bucky, and Sam had the larger one underneath them.

Five minutes to stuff luggage away and they were all outside again. It was just getting to late afternoon, and even with the long flight, they were all ready to go do something new.

"What are we gonna do, what are we gonna do, what are we gonna _dooooooo_?" Allie chanted, skipping in circles around the adults.

Nat caught her by the shoulders and held her still. "Did someone give you caffeine, baby?"

"Nope!" Allie beamed at her mom. "Steve gave me candy on the flight."

The super soldier cleared his throat nervously as the super spy gave him the stink-eye. "I had gummy bears," he explained. "She gave me puppy eyes."

Natasha sighed. "Fine. But you get to watch her."

"Okay." He grinned. "So, where are we going first?" he asked.

They decided to walk around the small town and the first person to find a nice place to eat, they would all meet there.

The twins and Sam wandered off, Bucky, Vision, and Darcy headed off in another direction, and Steve, Allie, and the spies started to walk in another. Steve gave Allie a little piece of flexi-rope to hang onto, and he held the other end of it so she wouldn't get lost or run off in her excitement.

"Seriously? A leash?" Clint asked, smirking at Steve's tactic.

"Hey, you didn't want to get her a monkey backpack leash," Steve said, shrugging.

Allie waited for them in front of a storefront window, showing little trinkets. "Can we go in, daddy?" she asked, bouncing in place.

"Okay, but you have to be very careful. You don't want to bounce and break something, right?"

"Right." Allie took a couple of deep breaths and did a full body wriggle to get the last of her hyperactivity out. "Okay," she said, handing the end of the rope to Steve. "We's good."

The shopkeeper was a little wrinkled old man, who didn't look the least bit fazed to see three Avengers in his shop. "Evening," he said, nodding to them.

"Evenin'," Clint replied genially.

Allie poked her nose into all corners of the shop, and found a little painting of a unicorn standing in heather in full bloom. "Ooh," she said, pausing to stare at the painting. She brought it up to the shopkeeper. "Scuse me, sir?"

He smiled at her. "What can I do for you, lass?"

"Why is the unicorn the national animal? Have you ever seen one? Why is the unicorn the national animal if it's not real? Why is this one in the painting so small? Oh. Also, my name's Allie. Hi."

"Hello, Allie. My name is Rob. And as for the unicorn..." He started to tell her the history of the mythical unicorn. "You see, people used to believe they were real, and in the 1300's the king of Scotland declared it the national animal because the unicorn and the lion were enemies. And the English national animal is the lion."

Allie's eyes went wide. "Oooohhhh. But why's this one so small? And why's it's horn black?"

"Because they come from ancient Babylon, and nobody really knows where the myth got started. They looked more like a goat or an antelope instead of a horse."

"Oh. So, we won't see one?"

He smiled. "Not in the cities you won't." His voice dropped to a whisper. "But if you go way out on the moors, at twilight, you just might see one."

Allie gasped. "Really?"

"Really."

"Whoa. Awesome." She held the painting out to her mom. "Can we get it? So I can play pretend?"

Natasha smiled. "Sure."

They bought the little painting, and Allie let Steve put it in his jacket pocket for safekeeping.

Sam called as they were leaving the store, and started with, "I found a pub that does a monster steak. Quick before Pietro orders them all."

"Be there in five," Steve replied, glancing at the GPS of Sam's location. "Dinner, guys?"

"Yes!" Allie said, pumping her fist in the air. "I'm so hungry." She looked up at Clint. "My feets hurt."

Clint picked her up and put her on his shoulders. "How's the weather up there?" he asked.

She giggled. "Good."

They met everyone at the pub. Allie had a tiny chicken pot pie and a cup of hot cocoa, and everyone else had burgers, fish and chips, and steaks, and pints of Guinness. Except Vision. He had a hot cocoa with Allie.

After dinner, they walked back to the B&B, Allie resting comfortably on Steve's shoulders. She yawned. "How far's'it?" she asked sleepily.

"Five more minutes," Steve replied. He pulled her off his shoulders and carried her so she could rest her head.

Natasha slowed to walk next to them. "Tired, baby?" she asked, smiling.

Allie yawned again. "Yup."

They got to the B&B, and everyone separated to go to bed. As soon as Allie snuggled into the very center of the fold-out couch, she fell asleep.

"Did she even brush her teeth?" Clint asked, coming out of the bathroom.

"Nope."

Clint smiled. "Sleep well, munchkin," he said softly, kissing his daughter's hair.

A~A~A~A

The next morning when Clint and Natasha woke up, the room was empty. There was a note next to Clint's head.

 _'Daddy, went outside to play with Bucky Steve Darcy maybe Sam if we find him some coffee. - Allie'_ It was carefully dated 7 AM.

Clint grinned and showed the note to Natasha. "Did you notice when she left?"

"No I didn't." She looked chagrined. "We must be losing our touch."

"Or we taught her too well," Clint replied, swinging his legs out of bed. "You wanna shower and I'll rustle up some breakfast?"

"Sure." Natasha kissed him and headed to the bathroom. "We can find the others afterwards."

They had a leisurely breakfast and after a last cup of coffee, ventured out to find the others.

"Your friends said something about going out to the meadows," one of the maids told them.

"Thanks."

They walked out of the castle, and headed towards the open fields. "Found 'em," Clint said, pointing to the small group of people on one of the hills.

Everyone was sitting on the ground, eating scones and drinking coffee, and a little further away there was a-

"Unicorn," Clint said, somewhat stupidly, watching the horse-like creature. "That is a unicorn."

Everyone else laughed. "Not a unicorn," Bucky replied. "She's an Alicorn."

"Did anyone get pictures?" Natasha asked.

Darcy held up her phone. "She posed for me."

Clint walked over to the 'alicorn' and it trotted up to him and nuzzled his stomach, careful not to poke him with its delicate blue horn. "Good morning sweetheart."

She transformed back into her normal self. "Good morning daddy." She hugged him. "Did you like my alicorn?"

He grinned and kissed her forehead. "Yes I did. You looked very ethereal with the morning mist."

She grinned. "Good. I like the word 'ethereal'. It's a pretty word." She took his hand and tugged him back to the others. "Let's go see what we're gonna explore today. And I want another scone. Alicorns have a very high met-a-bo-lism."

"Oh really?"

"Yup."

A~A~A~A

They spent a week and a half in Scotland, going to museums, ruins, and the lakes. They went to Loch Ness, and Allie wanted to shapeshift into the Loch Ness monster.

"Can I daddy?"

"That's probably not a good idea," Clint said gently. "There's lots of tourists around, and we don't want to end up all over social media, right?"

"Nope, never mind."

A~A~A~A

Tony called and told them to stay another week while things were finishing up.

So they went to London, and spent a week playing tourist there. They even made a trip down to Stonehenge.

"It's weird knowing that this is actually a warning about the Convergence," Darcy said, as they stood and stared at the stone monuments. "Like, we did that. Stopped that, I mean."

"And Dr. Selvig ran around without clothes on," Allie reminded her.

Darcy sighed. "That too."

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Coming soon, more fluff. Maybe a plot. Dunno, really...**


	31. Chapter 31

It was the first night in the new Avengers facility. There was a huge control room with wall to wall screens and holographic interfaces for Maria Hill to work from. And a _huge_ training room for everyone to exercise and train in. All their apartments had lofty ceilings and Tony had left the decorations to each individual.

Allie was tucked into bed by her parents, reminded that they were right next door, and left her to sleep. She managed to sleep for about two hours before waking up from a bad dream. "Lights!" she called softly, clutching Bucky Bear to her chest.

FRIDAY turned the lights on at 50% as per nighttime protocol.

Allie inspected the room for dangers. Nothing visible. It was just, unfamiliar, and that made it _scary_. She jumped out of bed and crossed to her parents' room.

Clint and Natasha were sound asleep.

Allie knew she was being silly, and she didn't want to wake them, but- she was only six years old and she needed reassurance. She closed the door quietly and headed to the labs.

Tony was still there, working on a piece of his suit, when he heard the tap of little feet. He turned just in time to catch an armful of Allie as she hugged him desperately. He hauled her into his lap and kissed her head. "What's up, buttercup?"

She squished her face into his neck as he smoothed her hair. "I'm scared."

He tensed slightly. "Of what?"

"Everything," she whispered. "I think there's monsters in my room."

Tony bit back a smile and dropped another kiss on her hair. "But that's impossible," he said, rubbing her back gently. "There can't be monsters."

"Why not?"

"Because, Steve, Vision, Clint and I built the security system for this place," Tony replied, bringing up a schematic with his free hand. "And it's totally monster-proof."

She eyed it thoughtfully. "Are you sure?"

"Should we go check?" Tony asked her.

She nodded.

He walked back to the apartment with her, and they swept the room for monsters with a handheld scanner and checked in all the crevices. "All clear," he reported, sitting next to Allie on the bed. "The only monster here is the tickle monster." He poked at her feet playfully.

She stifled a happy shriek into the pillow as she scrambled away, and then a second later she hugged him tightly. "Thank you, Tony. I love you lots."

"Love you too, sweetheart," he replied, hugging her tightly. "So. Back to bed?"

"No," she decided, "I'm not sleepy no more."

"Okay. How about some basic repairs then?"

"Yeah!"

Back to the workshop. Tony did repairs while Allie made a blanket nest in the corner for her and Dummy-E. The next time Tony looked over Allie was sound asleep. He smiled. "FRIDAY."

"Sir?"

"When the superspies wake up tell them the baby spy is with me, safe and sound."

"Yes sir."

A~A~A~A

Allie got to pick out all the decorations for her room the next day (purple and light blue, with smatterings of orange and pink), and Tony, without telling anyone, got her a bunch of new toys to go along with her old ones. "New place, new things," was his rationalization to Clint. "It's like a welcome home present."

"You got her an entire fleet of robots."

"Yeah but she has to build them. It's educational!"

" _I_ love them," Allie piped up from the floor, where she was reacquainting herself with her stuffed animals that had been left behind in the Tower till then.

Tony smiled smugly at Clint. "See? I'm the cool uncle."

The next few days were full of decorating. Allie flitted from one suite to the next, helping them pick out colors and lamps and bedspreads. She liked Steve's room, because it was homey and comfy and full of art supplies, and she liked Wanda's room, because it had little knick-knacks to play with. Pietro's room was already super messy, and Sam's room had bits of wings and machinery in it. "I'm building myself a sidekick," he told her. Bucky's was great - it had pictures of space in it, and she liked to stare at the galaxies.

Allie didn't particularly like Bruce's room. "It's too blah," she told him seriously.

He tried not to smile. "Is that the technical term for it?"

"Yes." She bounced onto the bed and stared at the white walls. "It needs a personality."

"What do you suggest?" he asked.

She frowned and put her chin on her fist, thinking about decorations. "I think you should paint the walls a nice light brown. And have a nice comfy chair to read in. And some cool looking lights. And, some pictures. Everybody needs pictures on their wall."

"That's true," Bruce said.

She nodded sagely. "I'll help you pick out some nice pictures of everybody and we can print 'em out."

"Sounds like a plan."

They worked on the room the entire day. Tony's robots did the painting, with the Stark-ified quick-drying one-coat formula, and as soon as that had dried, they shopped for furniture. Bruce picked a recliner, Allie picked a standing lamp that had three lights on it that you could move around, and a shelf so he could put things. She also ordered a bunch of picture frames, all deep brown to match the rest of his furniture.

Bruce smiled as they went through the albums. He hadn't realized just how many pictures JARVIS, and then FRIDAY, had stored up of the Avengers. Lots of good shots, goofy shots, and tender moments. Lots of people sleeping in odd places.

There was a picture of Steve sitting at the table, his head on his hand, completely asleep, holding a cup of coffee in the other hand. What that picture didn't show, was that two minutes later when he awoke, he automatically moved his hand and tipped the coffee all over himself. Bucky had nearly peed himself laughing.

A~A~A~A

It had been four days when Allie remembered something important. "Hey dad?"

"Yes munchkin?"

"When am I gonna go to school?"

Clint put down the tablet and stared at her. "Uh... that's a good question baby." He stood up and held out a hand. "Let's go ask your mom."

"Okay." She held his hand as they walked down the hall to find Natasha.

They found her and Steve talking Avengers stuff in one of the conference rooms. "Hey, Allie," Steve said, smiling at her.

"Hi Steve." She scrambled into her mom's lap. "When am I going to school?"

Natasha's brow furrowed. "Good question."

"That's what daddy said."

"Wait a second," Clint said, "It's June."

"So?" Allie asked.

"You don't have school," Clint realized, face palming. "You're on summer vacation. You don't have to do school till September."

Allie gaped. "What? That's three whole months!"

"Yep."

Allie flopped dramatically over the table. "What am I gonna _dooo_ for _three whole months_? I'm already _boreeeeddd_... maybe Tony would let me play with his suit scraps again... can I ask him daddy?"

The adults shared a glance. That sounded like a bad idea. "How about not?" Clint suggested. "What if we made cupcakes instead?"

"You burn water, Clint," Natasha said flatly, her mouth tugging into a smile.

"Okay, then _Steve_ can make cupcakes with you."

"Yes!" She slid across the table and threw herself at Steve. "Cupcakes!"

He slung her across his shoulder and stood up, smirking as she shrieked. "Cupcakes," he echoed. "While your parents decide grown up things."

"Save me one!" Clint called after his daughter.

"No!" she giggled, waving.

He shook his head. "She's too cute," he complained to his wife.

Natasha kissed his forehead. "You're just a pushover," she told him.

"I know." He sat on the edge of the table and took her hand, playing with the wedding ring on her finger. "So, what do you think we should do about summer vacation?"

"We could send her to Laura's for a week or two," Natasha suggested.

"And the other two and a half months?"

"I have no idea. Could we get her a tutor? Is that what normal people do with their smart children?"

"Clint, you're asking the wrong person."

They asked Tony.

"Yup," he said, and his eyes softened. "I had this tutor, Anna, she was great. Taught me how to make bottle rockets." He clapped his hands together. "So. Tutor for Allie. FRIDAY will find us some people. I'm sure there's at least one person in the world that can handle a shapeshifting six-year-old and her crazy family."

"And in the meantime, Allie can go visit her cousins," Clint decided.

They sent Bruce with her, as security/grown-up-helper-to-Laura. Laura was thankful for the extra pair of grownup hands, and Bruce found that the quiet countryside and green fields were very soothing - even with the shrieking of happy children in the area.

FRIDAY scanned the entire industry, found twenty people. Natasha and Tony did deeper background checks and dropped it to ten. Steve and Clint did the "vibe" test and dropped it to five. The finalists were interviewed by Natasha and Steve, as the two Avengers who could literally sense when someone was lying. Four of them were disqualified as not being able to handle the Avengers' crazy lifestyle without freaking out.

The only person left was a young high schooler named Peter Parker. He was initially alight with hero-worshipping but he managed to play it cool, and he was nerdy, funny, and absolutely sincere.

"All right, last interview is with Allie," Clint said, guiding the gangly teenager down to the living room.

"Cool." He tugged at the straps of his backpack.

Allie was waiting for them with Natasha, and they were chatting about what color nail polish they would use when they had mom-n-Allie spa day later. As soon as Clint and Peter walked in, she ran right up to them. "Hello," she said.

Peter grinned at her. "Hi."

"I'm Allie. What's your name?"

"Peter."

"Nice to meet you Peter."

He smiled at her. "Nice to meet you too." He crouched down so he was at her level. "So. What's your favorite school subject?"

"Everything."

"Really?"

"Yup. What's yours?"

"Mine is science."

Allie's smile widened. "You're a scientist? Like Bruce and Tony?"

"I want to be, yup."

"Awesome. What kind of scientist are you gonna be?"

"Biochemistry or biophysics."

She tilted her head and studied him. "Teach me something about that?"

"Okay." Peter didn't know if this was part of the test or not, but he pulled out his summer science homework. "I'm writing a paper right now about genomes. Do you know what those are?"

"DNA?" She'd heard Bruce talking about how Hulking out changed his genome.

"You're right." He smiled at her. "You know, I think you might have to write the paper instead of me."

She giggled. "But I'm not in high school, silly. I'm six."

"What? Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure."

"Hm. Well, I think you're the smartest six-year-old I've ever met." He turned a page in his notebook. "So, this is a picture of a human genome..."

They talked science for a little bit, and Allie invited him to play tea party.

"Sure," he said cheerfully. "I love tea."

"And we have cookies," she informed him in a stage whisper. "Bucky makes the best cookies!"

Peter's eyes went wide. "Bucky Barnes made cookies?"

"Yeah." Allie looked at her dad. "I like him. Can we keep him?"

Clint looked at Natasha. She nodded. "Sure," he said.

"Yay!" Allie grabbed Peter's hand. "Cookies."

"Thank you for this opportunity," Peter told her parents, before he was dragged away to playtime.

A~A~A~A

Allie's tutor was great. He was patient and dorky and worshipped Tony. He usually spent from 9 to 3 with Allie doing educational activities that ranged from reading to blowing up sodas, and then he'd spend the rest of the day in R&D. Tony didn't mind at all, having a mini-me. Everyone else thought it was adorable.

About a month later, Peter had to help his aunt, so "school" was cancelled. Allie played with the twins, and followed them to the training room. There was a trampoline in the corner where she played while she watched her mom and Steve teach the twins hand to hand.

Only an hour in though, and Steve called it a day.

"Where you goin', Steve?" Allie asked, jumping off the trampoline and following him out the door.

"To DC, baby. Sam's old VA is doing a meeting for some war veterans, and Captain America has been invited to give a speech and meet some people."

"Is it a fund-raising-er?"

"It's a fundraiser, yeah," Steve said, smiling at her.

"Can I come?"

He wrinkled his nose at her. "It'll be boring, sweetheart."

"Please?" She gave him puppy eyes and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging tightly. "Please can I come? I'll be super quiet during your speech."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "Well, if you ask your mom and she says yes, then yes, I'd love to have you come with me."

"Awesome! Don' move Steeb!" She zoomed back to the training room and bounced up and down in front of Natasha. "Mom mom mom mommy can I go with Steve to the VA with Sam to give a speech please please?"

Natasha raised an eyebrow at her. "Is he okay with it?"

"Yup!"

"Why do you want to go?" she asked.

Allie tugged at her sleeve to get her to bend down, and whispered something into her ear.

Natasha laughed and kissed her baby girl's cheek. "That sounds perfect. You can go, _malyshka_."

"Yay thank you mommy!" She kissed her mom goodbye and zoomed out again. "Steve!"

He hadn't moved from his spot in the hallway. "What's the word?" he asked.

"She said yes!"

"Cool." He gave her a high five. "Okay. Can you put on something nice to show respect?"

"Yeah. Can you do my hair in the fishy braid?"

"Sure."

Allie ran to her room and changed out of her play clothes into a pretty black and white polkadot dress with a bright blue ribbon, and her little black Mary Janes. She grabbed Bucky Bear too.

Steve had changed, not into his Captain America uniform, but a dark blue suit with a grey tie, and his tie clip was his circular shield.

"I like your clip," Allie said, giggling when she saw it.

Steve grinned wryly. "Thanks, doll. Guess who gave it to me?"

"Coulson?"

"Nope."

"Bucky."

"Nope."

She scrunched her face, thinking about who else would give him his own merchandise. "Mommy?"

"Yep."

She giggled. "Yeah. She gave daddy Hawkeye socks."

Steve did her hair into a neat fishtail braid, and they got in the car. Steve would be murdered in his sleep if he took Allie on his motorcycle, even if he put her in the sidecar.

They got to DC in good time, and Steve parked the car next to Sam's. "All right, doll, ready?" he asked, turning to look at her in the backseat.

There was a small grey fluff of a bird sitting in the booster seat instead, wearing a little blue ribbon. She cheeped.

Steve smiled. It was a baby bald eagle. "Really?"

She cheeped, and hopped to the front seat.

He grinned. "You can't do a full bald eagle, yet?"

The baby eagle squinted sideways, flashed into a full size bald eagle for a second, and then reverted to the ball of fluff. She shook her head emphatically.

He kissed her downy head. "All right. Sam's guys are gonna love you." He perched her on his shoulder, and they walked inside.

Sam started grinning as soon as he spotted them. "Captain America and a bald eagle," he said, shaking his head. "This is epic." He gestured towards the gym. "We're ready."

"Thanks Sam."

"Cap."

As soon as Steve walked in, all eyes were on him. He smiled and nodded at them, and made his way to the front.

Allie ruffled her feathers and hopped onto the speaker stand when Steve got there.

"This is my friend, Allie," Steve started, smoothing his fingers down her back. "We're honored to be here today..."

As he gave his speech (he was very good at speeches), Allie entertained herself by looking at all the attendants, and figuring out what she wanted for snacks. There were some brownies on the table in the back that looked delectilicious, as she and Pietro liked to say.

Suddenly everyone was clapping and Steve was saluting the room. Allie did a little salute with her wing, and everyone aww'ed. He held out a hand for Allie and she hopped into his palm.

Everyone wanted to shake hands with Steve and pet the little bald eagle. She accepted cuddles eagerly, and then sat on Steve's shoulder, nestled into the curve of his neck.

He tickled her little neck. "Should we get some snacks to go?" he asked.

She nodded, and tapped at his cheek until he picked up a brownie.

He chuckled and wrapped it in a napkin for her.

Sam came over to them. "How about lunch in the old diner down the street?" he asked. "They make some amazing chicken nuggets."

Allie bobbed her head yes. Yes yes yes.

Sam snickered. "Great. I'll meet you guys there."

Steve walked back to the car, and put Allie in the car seat.

She transformed back into a little girl and accepted the brownie eagerly. "Yay, thank you. You did awesome on your speech."

"Thanks, sweetheart. You did awesome as a bald eagle."

She mumbled her thanks through a mouthful of brownie. "Chicken nuggets?" she asked, once she'd swallowed.

He laughed. "All right, let's go eat."

The three of them had lunch, and Allie fell asleep in the car on the way back. She only woke up when Steve transferred her to Clint's arms. "Daddy?" she murmured sleepily.

Clint kissed her cheek. "Hey sweetheart." He started walking towards the living room. "How come you were a bald eagle for Steve but you've never been a hawk for me?"

"I dunno," Allie replied drowsily. "I'll pwactice sometin' for you, daddy."

He laid her down on the sofa and covered her with a blanket. "All right baby. Finish your nap first."

"Kay."

A~A~A~A


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: The author, it lives! *gasp* Hi. Sorry for the wait, so I decided just to give you guys this mini-chapter. RL, lack of plot, indecision as to where to take the rest of the story because movies aren't coming out fast enough... it all adds up, ya know? Also, I've been working on some Star Trek and Stargate stories which may or may not be coming out soon, depending... anywho.**

 **Spoilers for five minutes of Ant-Man.**

Peter had an erratic schedule sometimes, with his summer classes and helping his aunt, and on those days, Allie would stay home or go out with whichever Avenger wasn't crime fighting.

Today, it was Sam. He was holding down the fort while everyone was out on different missions. They were currently working on Sam's new wingman, a robot with a very simple AI that would cover his flank or work as a UAV. The device only had a core built, but Sam was already calling her 'Redwing.'

They were working on paint schematics, when the intruder alert went off.

Sam placed Allie on the floor, and tucked her under the table. "Stay here," he ordered, and took off running, suiting up at the same time. "FRIDAY, sit rep!"

Allie pulled up a screen and watched Sam and the guy in the red suit square off, and then suddenly the guy in the red suit shrunk and disappeared. "Is he a shapeshifter, FRIDAY?" she asked interestedly.

"No Miss Allie," FRIDAY replied. "Scans show that the suit is doing the shrinking."

"Cool." Allie giggled as Sam got his butt kicked, and the tiny dude made off with something from one of the storerooms. "I weally hope he's not a bad guy cuz he's cool."

Sam came inside. "Allie."

"Yeah Sam?"

"It's really important to me that Steve never finds out about this, okay?"

"But it's on the report," she replied, confused.

"No, not that. The other thing."

She giggled. "That you got beat up by a ant?"

He huffed. "Yeah."

She patted his knee consolingly. "It's okay, Sam. We don't have to tell him."

"Good."

Two days later Pym Technologies HQ blew up in a strange implosion. Tony, for old time's sake, reached out to Hank Pym to see if he was all right.

The old man was fine. "Everything's great," he said. "That should have happened a while ago."

"Ookay... you'd tell us, if you needed anything?"

"Sure, Tony." Hank glanced offscreen. "I gotta go."

"So, he's hiding something," Tony announced to the others. "But supposedly everything's fine."

"No more infinity stones?" Allie asked worriedly.

"Nope."

"Good." She hugged her mom. "I don't like them."

"Me either, baby."

A~A~A~A

Allie's side projects were her robots that had yet to be assembled. Tony had taken away the "finished look" pages in the instruction books, so she didn't know what she was building until the final stages. This time, it was a dinosaur. She and Pietro were working on it together, and all it needed was a coat of paint.

Pietro held up the orange spray can. "May I, Allie?"

"Sure." She sat back on her heels and watched a Pietro-shaped blur move around the dino sculpture a few hundred times.

He stopped with a huff, and sat down next to Allie. "What do you think?" he asked.

He'd sprayed the small T-rex with several even layers of orange paint, and whirled around it so fast, it dried.

"We should watch Jurassic Park," Allie suggested.

Pietro ruffled her hair. "Don't even think about it, little one. Your mama told me not to let you watch that."

She pouted. "But I like dinosaurs."

"But they're scary," he pouted back. "You don't want nightmares, do you?"

She increased the pout. "No."

"Good girl." He picked up the remote-control console and handed it to Allie. "Try it out."

She put the dinosaur through its paces. This particular model, she had rigged for walking, roaring, and shooting lasers out of its eyes. Non-lethal lasers, to everyone's relief.

Pietro watched Allie move the dinosaur up and down the lab, and had an idea. "Hey Allie?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you turn into a dinosaur?"

Her mouth fell open into a perfect 'o'. "I don't know," she said, surprised she'd never thought of the idea herself. "Let's try it!" She concentrated, and a few seconds later, turned into a small T-Rex, about the size of her robot. "Rawr."

"Awesome."

She nudged his shoulder with her head and managed to make him fall over. "Rawr."

He scratched at the flat top of her head. "Hey, let's go play some pranks," he said.

A vigorous head-butt of agreement.

"Cool."

A~A~A~A

Steve was on the couch, upside down, reading about gravitational wells as researched by Dr. Richards, when Pietro strolled into the room. "Hi Steve."

"Hey. What's up?"

"Your feet," Pietro smirked, and strolled out again, hiding strategically behind the entry to the kitchen with a video camera in his hands.

Steve grunted a laugh and returned to his reading. If they could use gravity sinkholes against individual enemies...

"RAWWWRRR!"

Steve saw the T-Rex coming towards him, let out a shriek, fell onto the floor, hopped to his feet, vaulted over the couch for protection, and then realized- "Allie?" he asked the three-foot tall T-Rex, pressing a hand to his hammering heart.

Allie transformed back into a little girl, laughing hysterically. "You, you, fell off the _couch_!" she shrieked, giggling so hard she hiccupped. "Your _face_!"

Pietro came out from the kitchen, waving the video camera as he snickered. "Cap versus the dinosaurs," he said weakly, leaning on the wall as he laughed.

Steve threw himself back on the couch, still panting. "Allie, I think you scared ten years off my life," he said, shaking his head. "Whew."

"You okay though?" she asked, concerned, sitting on his stomach.

He tickled her gently. "I'm fine." He grinned. "Hey. Let's go see what Bucky's doing."

Results:

Bucky, when confronted with T-Rex behind the bathroom door, screams like a little girl. Video destroyed.

Tony, when confronted with T-Rex instead of next cup of coffee, made Allie rich with his contributions to the swear jar.

Clint, when confronted with T-Rex upon opening his eyes post-nap, screams like a little girl.

Bruce, when confronted with peaceful T-Rex headbutt, thought it was cute.

Thor thought it was cute.

Loki thought it was an excellent rendition.

The rest of the Avengers got wind of the transformation, and the "experiment" ended. Videos of results sent to Phil Coulson for entertainment purposes.

Allie refused to turn into a raptor, since technically they were the size of a chicken and she didn't want to be called an ankle-biter.

A~A~A~A


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Hello! Long time no see, sorry. I've been working on RL, and on two other stories that I want to get ready for posting. Here's the next chapter. Fluff, angst, more angst. Spoilers for CW.**

Peter was in New Jersey with a friend. The Avengers were on a "field trip" doing training maneuvers with the Hulk. Allie was at home with Maria, and currently napping as a baby Yorkie in the soft comfy confines of a throw pillow on the floor.

When she woke up, Maria was gone, and a tall, regal man was standing with his back to the room, looking out at the landscape. Allie yelped in mild alarm, and the man turned to look at her.

He had a look of kindness about him, and so instead of running away, Allie transformed into herself again (after all, not just anybody can come into Maria's office) and hugged the pillow to herself. "Hi," she said shyly.

He smiled at her. "Hello. You must be Allie."

"Yup."

"I'm T'Challa."

"The king of Wakanda?" she asked interestedly, dropping the pillow and moving a step forward.

"No, that is my father T'Chaka. I am the prince."

"Oooh." She pulled her necklace out of her shirt and held it up. "Your daddy gave this to me." And she added a belated, "sir," since he was a real-life prince.

He knelt and smiled at her. "That used to be mine. I am very glad it went to someone who appreciates it."

"Yeah. I appreciate it very much. It's the special-est thing I have, except for Bucky Bear and my robot dog and my other robots."

T'Challa grinned. "And you are a shapeshifter."

"Yup!" She eyed him curiously. "Do you have a superpower?"

"I am like Captain Rogers," he said, after a moment.

Her eyes lit up. "You're really fast and strong and smart?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Tony-smart?"

T'Challa's grin turned smug. "Maybe."

"Awesome." She gestured to the necklace visible on his collar. "Is that shark teeth? Daddy brought me a shark tooth from Hawaii but it looks kinda different."

He showed her the necklace. "These are panther claws."

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yes. In my country, the leader of the people is known as the Black Panther." His voice lowered, and he whispered, "But since my father is old, I am the Black Panther."

"Cool!" She bounced on her tiptoes. "Are you here for superhero stuff?"

"Of a sort, yes."

"Cool."

He got a call on his phone, then, and with an apologetic look he moved back to the window to answer it. When he turned back to Allie, there was a small, perfectly formed black panther kitten sitting on the floor, grinning at him. He smiled. "That is very good."

Allie meowed a thanks, and came to rub at his ankles.

He picked her up, and scratched at her ears. "Do you know why my people revere the black panther?" he asked.

A headshake 'no.'

"Well, a long time ago..."

Maria came back to find T'Challa, prince of Wakanda, sitting on the floor in her office, engaged in a staring contest with a black panther kitten. As she entered, T'Challa twitched, and the kitten pounced. He scooped her up, and scratched her belly. "You win," he told the kitten, who looked undeniably smug.

Maria grinned. "Having fun?" she asked.

T'Challa stood gracefully, kitten in arms. "Yes, we are." He handed her his phone. "May I take a picture with you, Allie?"

A bop in the cheek with her nose.

Maria took a picture of the Black Panther with the black panther, and handed it back, grinning. "That is cute," she said.

When the Avengers came back, tired, sore, and dirty, none of them were prepared for the sight of T'Challa and Allie sitting at the living room table, drinking tea and looking at cute cat pictures on the internet.

"Hi guys," Allie said cheerfully.

"Your highness," Steve said politely, shaking T'Challa's hand. "I hope our littlest Avenger kept you well entertained."

"Oh yes," T'Challa said, smiling. "If she were not busy here I would invite her to become a member of the council."

"I'm an honorary black panther now," Allie informed them, and transformed into her newest favorite for a moment before switching back. "We're invited for vacations."

Natasha smiled. "That's nice."

T'Challa and Steve and Tony moved off to talk business, and Allie offered her mommy a cookie. "How did trainings go?" she asked.

"We won," Natasha replied, smirking.

"Of course you did, you were on the Hulk's side," Clint retorted, and rubbed at a bruise on his back. "Ow."

"Sorry," Bruce said sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it," Clint said, patting him on the back. "Just next time do it to the bad guys."

"Got it."

A~A~A~A

"What is it about people named Ross?" Sam asked no one in particular, as he glared at the short blond man that faced the Avengers.

He sighed. "Just because my last name is Ross does not mean in any way that I am out to take down the Avengers or Doctor Banner or anyone in particular. I am just here to-"

"To warn us about a possible future where all superpowered people become property of the state," Steve finished, his voice hard. "We heard you."

"Captain Rogers, the only reason I'm telling you this is because nobody wants it to happen. We have already dealt with the Winter Soldier issue, and the close call in Sokovia. Obliterate HYDRA, by all means. Save the world, yes please. But keep your noses clean and your heads up before it becomes my job to try and regulate your activity." Everett Ross gave them a curt nod, and walked out of the room.

The coffee cup on the conference table turned back into Allie. "I don't think I like him," she decided.

Wanda pulled her into her lap, and kissed her hair. "I don't think he's a very likeable person, malyshka," she said, the Russian endearment coming easily to her lips.

"He's right though," Tony volunteered after a moment. "We do need some kind of supervision."

Rhodey raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, did we sweep the room for Life-Model Decoys before this conversation because I think I'm looking at one right now."

"Tony's right," Steve sighed, looking all of his hundred years for a moment, "but there's no one we can trust to do the overseeing, so we're just gonna have to muddle along." He looked at Tony. "Between the two of us we can figure it out, can't we?"

Tony met his gaze and nodded. "We're both geniuses, we'll think of something."

Clint clapped his hands together and stood up. "Good. Now that's out of the way, someone mentioned something about pancakes?"

"Yes!" Pietro zoomed off towards the kitchen. "I'll get 'em started!" he called back, his speed making him sound like a hyped-up chipmunk.

Allie craned her neck to look up at Wanda, who hadn't moved. "Wanda?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

Wanda was staring at Bucky. "The Avengers," she said quietly. "We were almost destroyed..."

Allie hugged her. "But we aren't. Everything's okay. Mr. Ross went home."

"We almost weren't," Wanda said, her gaze far away. Her hands glowed a light red as she hugged Allie, trying to ground herself in the little girl's presence. She took a deep breath, and smiled slightly. "Visions are funny things, aren't they, Allie?"

Allie frowned at her. "Are you sure you's okay, Wanda?"

"I'm sure." Wanda scooped Allie up with her telekinesis and floated her through the air, making her giggle like mad. "Come on, let's go have brunch."

Allie did a cartwheel in midair and giggled.

A~A~A~A

Later that night, after bath time, story time, and cuddles, Allie fell asleep surrounded by her stuffed animals. As she entered REM sleep, her body started to glow slightly red...

 _Sokovia, gone, destroyed. Tony gone, defeated. Bucky a walking PTSD. Bruce, gone. Pietro, dead. The team sad and small and trying to do its best._

 _Lagos. Screams, rubble, so much guilt._

 _The secretary of state. An argument. A binding signature._

 _Bucky! Bombs! Death! Capture! An evil man in sheep's clothing... a series of words... cold, dead eyes of the Winter Soldier..._

 _Fighting. So much fighting. The team, now two, pulling their punches, dodging and weaving, nothing at full power, trying to convince themselves they're both right and both wrong - why wasn't anyone listening?_

 _A prison in the ice. Six bodies. A recording from 1991. Tears, betrayal, emotional manipulation that worked until three of the strongest men ever were on the floor, nearly dead from fighting. A stolen quinjet. Another tube of ice. A raft, a prison, a breakout._

 _Three beings in an empty compound, waiting for a crisis big enough to bring the team together again..._

Allie let out a cry of absolute anguish, sobbing into her pillow, curling around her favored Bucky Bear as she wept. "No, no, come back," she pleaded, caught in the terrible nightmare of what-almost-was. "Come back, come back, _please_..."

FRIDAY alerted Clint to his daughter's distress and he rolled out of bed, instantly awake. He heard her heart-breaking sobs and ran to her room, kneeling by her bed. "What is it, Allie, what's wrong?" he asked, scooping the hysterical child into his arms.

"Come back, come back!" She thrashed and wriggled, trying to get out of his grasp.

Clint tried to hold her closer. "Shh, shh, it's a nightmare, it's just a dream baby, you're okay, you're okay."

Allie couldn't hear him. " _STEVETONYNO_!" she shrieked, and went absolutely limp.

Clint's heart dropped to his toes and he felt for a pulse. "Allie?" He found it, just barely. "Allie, Allie, can you hear me? Allie, sweetheart, wake up." He touched her face.

She didn't respond.

"FRIDAY, alert medical," he said tersely, shoving the terrified father down and bringing Hawkeye to bear before he completely freaked out. He picked up the unresponsive girl and ran to the infirmary, laying her down on the waiting bed.

Natasha met him there, pale with worry as soon as FRIDAY had notified her there was something wrong with Allie. "What happened?" she asked, reaching out to stroke Allie's cheek gently.

"I don't know. She had a nightmare and she was screaming and then she just passed out-" Clint watched the doctors surround his baby girl, talking about dopamine levels and brainwaves and unresponsive to stimuli, and felt his knees go weak. "Tasha-"

She braced him automatically, and they clung to each other as Allie was wheeled away for scans. "We have to tell the others," Tasha said numbly, her own objective Black Widow persona nowhere to be found. "We have to do..."

FRIDAY's calm voice interrupted her trailing sentence. "The Avengers have been notified. Doctor Banner and Captain Rogers are on their way to medical. Mr. Stark is reviewing the security logs to identify what happened."

A second later, a more-rumpled-than-usual Dr. Banner bustled through the doors. He paused for a second to nod at Clint and Natasha, and then went through to the other doctors. That one glance was enough to calm them down a fraction.

Steve came through the doors a half-second later, and went straight to Clint and Natasha. Even in pajama pants and a white T-shirt that actually fit him, he was a commanding presence, and both superheroes relaxed a fraction more. Someone was here to take over. "What happened?" Steve asked.

Clint told him.

"All right." Steve deftly steered them both to chairs, and made them sit down. "Bruce will figure it out. Let's just take a second to pull it together and then we'll go see what the doctors say, okay?"

"Someone should be there with Allie," Clint said, and tried to stand.

Steve held him down in the chair. "C'mon Clint, no one needs a fainter in medical. Stay here, I'll get you both a cup of coffee." He gave them a Captain 'Murica stink-eye and headed to the coffee station.

He came back a moment later with two cups of coffee so thick with caffeine and sugar just smelling it made Clint's hands jitter. Steve glared at them until they both downed the cups, and amazingly, it worked to steady their nerves.

"All right," Steve said, levering them to their feet. "Let's go see what's up."

The trio ventured into the actual medical section, and Bruce met them in the hallway. He held out his hands calmly. "She's stable," he assured them. "She's just, not waking up."

Clint twitched. "What does that mean, not waking up?" he asked, his voice dangerously low.

Bruce ignored the hostility. "It means, she's in a state of extended REM sleep and we can't wake her up. She's seeing something, and it's got her in a state of catatonia. She was unconscious for five minutes and then she started crying and calling out names."

"Whose names?" Natasha asked.

"Ours," Bruce said. "All the Avengers. Her brain activity is through the roof, and until we know what's causing this we can't sedate her."

"But she's terrified," Clint objected. "Whatever she's seeing, she was terrified." He could still hear her scream echoing in his ears.

"I know," Bruce said grimly. "We tried to sedate her already, it didn't even take. Just made her body relax, but her mind... it's somewhere else right now and physically, medically, there's nothing we can do. I'm going to do some blood tests, radiation tests, to see if there's anything causing this level of activity but right now we just have to wait it out."

"Can't Vision, or Wanda, do something?" Steve asked quietly.

Bruce nodded. "I'm getting Vision down here, but we don't know if trying to get a telepath in there will make things worse."

Steve patted him on the shoulder. "Just do your best, Bruce."

"I will." He headed to the nearest lab.

The trio entered Allie's hospital room. She was tiny in the hospital bed built to accommodate a superhero's larger bulk, and now she was pale and motionless, wearing little silver disks that were transmitting information to a dozen monitors.

A young nurse was sitting in the chair by her bed, holding her hand. She stood up when the Avengers entered. "I'm Maya," she said kindly. "Hold her hand, talk to her, try and keep her calm." She moved out of the room.

Natasha took the vacant chair and held Allie's hand. "Shh, baby, we're here," she said softly, kissing her forehead. "We're not going anywhere."

The only movement on her part was the restless twitching of her eyes behind her eyelids as she tracked something only she could see.

Steve clasped Clint on the shoulder lightly. "I'll get you some more coffee," he said.

"Keep it coming," Clint said, dragging a chair to Allie's other side.

Vision knocked on the open door and came in hesitantly. "May I?" he asked, gesturing to Allie.

"Yeah." Clint stepped back from the bed and let Vision take his place.

Vision laid a translucent hand on Allie's forehead, and his eyes closed. He was instantly transported to...

the compound?

A~A~A~A

 _Vision looked around for anyone else. Allie was there, ghostly and translucent like himself. "Allie," he said, kneeling in front of her._

 _She looked through him, her eyes wide and terrified. "Rhodey's hurt," she said, giving a little sob. "He fell."_

 _Vision looked in that direction, and saw a solid version of himself helping a sweating, cursing version of Rhodey to walk three steps across to a motorized wheelchair. His heart dropped. "Rhodey is fine," he told Allie. "Why are you dreaming this?"_

 _"I'm not," Allie said, and she looked up at him, her young eyes too world-weary. "This isn't my dream. Whose is it, Vision?"_

 _He held tight to her hand, the two of them unreal in a solid world. "I don't know. Take me back to the beginning."_

 _"How?"_

 _"Concentrate."_

 _She screwed her eyes closed, and then the scene changed._

 _They were standing in an alleyway. Allie turned to look at a cardboard box, and saw herself as a puppy. "That's me," she breathed. "What..."_

 _A version of Clint walked by the entrance to the alleyway, whistling tunelessly, a box of doughnuts in his hand. Because of the whistling, he missed the whimpering of the puppy in the alley and continued on his merry way._

 _Allie let out a choked sob. "No, daddy, come back, you has to come back!" She turned to the puppy, screaming. "Go after him! Go get him!"_

 _The puppy was too tired. She didn't._

 _Vision held a sobbing Allie in his arms as they watched a child find the puppy, and bring it home to its mother. The other version of Allie changed into her regular form, and scared the family half to death. "Pwease help," the four-year-old sobbed._

 _A month later, Allie was given into the care of Professor Xavier. "You're going to be safe here," the professor promised, his eyes kind. "Everything will be all right."_

 _But in the Avengers tower, tempers were riled, people split up on their merry way. Steve joined SHIELD, Clint went back to his family, HE WAS MARRIED TO LAURA, WHAT!, and Thor never came back until Greenwich._

 _Vision felt himself slipping from the vision of this other world, and grabbed Allie's hands desperately. "Come back with me," he said. "Wake up, Allie."_

 _"I can't," she whimpered, and her whole body glowing a faint red was the last thing Vision saw-_

He woke up, and jerked away from the bed on instinct, nearly stumbling over the chair.

Clint steadied him. "What?" he asked desperately. "What's wrong? The both of you were screaming, why was she telling me to come back? What's she dreaming about?"

Vision, even though he didn't need to breath, took a steadying breath. "I believe her mind is trapped in an alternate timeline," he said. "Where events played out differently, and the Avengers are separated." He racked his brains. "I saw, before I fell out of the vision, a hint of red..."

Natasha spoke up. "Wanda?"

Vision nodded. "She may know how to fix this. I will retrieve her." He hurried from the room.

Clint pressed a kiss to Allie's white cheek. "I'm right here, munchkin, I'm not going anywhere."

In the midst of the other-universe, Allie couldn't hear him. _She was alone and there were helicarriers falling from the sky..._

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Sorry to leave y'all hanging. Check out my other stories in the meantime! :)**


	34. Chapter 34

Vision found Wanda asleep in her room, moving restlessly, her hands sparking with red energy. "Wanda?" he said, shaking her shoulder gently.

She didn't wake up.

Vision resisted the urge to groan. "Wanda, please wake up." He put his hands to her face and closed his eyes. _Wanda_.

She jerked awake. "Vision?" she asked blearily. "What's, what's going on?" She sat up and frowned at him. "What did we say about doors?"

"It was important," he said. "What were you dreaming?"

"I don't know, it was strange..." She rubbed at her temples. "It was just us, but different. We were fighting for some reason."

Vision felt his heart sink. "Wanda, did you give that dream to Allie?"

Wanda's eyes widened. "No. Why?"

"Because she's trapped in another timeline and she can't wake up." Vision helped her up. "Come on."

Wanda's eyes widened. "What?" She followed him quickly. "What's going on?"

He explained it to her quickly, and by the time they were at the hospital room Wanda was up to speed.

"Wanda!" Natasha rose to her feet. "Can you fix this?"

Wanda stared at the little girl on the bed. She'd never seen Allie that still. She glanced at Clint, who was still guarding her. "May I?"

"Yeah." He stepped back hesitantly.

Wanda put her hands to Allie's temples, and closed her eyes. She was immediately sucked back into the dream she was having, which, apparently, was a vision of an alternate universe.

 _Allie was standing in the ruins of Wanda's hometown, in the middle of the church, watching two scared young twins speak to a hulking metal robot._

 _"Allie!" Wanda knelt to hug the child. "How are you here?"_

 _"I don't know," Allie sniffed, curling into the embrace. "Take me home, Wanda."_

 _"I will." Wanda focused on the waking world, their own timeline, but her gaze was distracted by the other-Wanda, who turned and looked straight at them._

 _Other-Wanda's head tilted as she frowned at them, and red tendrils began to snake towards them._

 _Wanda reacted instantly, and threw herself and Allie forward, into the future._

 _It was a dark basement. Steve and Sam stood over a hunched figure. It was Bucky, his eyes haunted._

 _"No," Allie wailed, seeing her favorites looking so solemn._

 _Wanda leaped them forward again, trying to find a happy place in this universe where she could concentrate and keep Allie calm._

 _They ended up in a battle, where all the Avengers and people Allie didn't recognize were fighting against terrible monsters and someone with a purple face wielding a giant golden glove. It glowed with an eerie, multi-colored light, and as they watched he vaporized a mountain._

 _Allie huddled into Wanda's neck. "No, no I don't want to see this."_

 _"Okay, okay." Wanda went back to a place she knew would be safe. The Avengers compound from before._

 _Only Tony, Vision, and Rhodey were there, solemnly watching a football game. Rhodey's braces lay discarded on the side. A flip phone sat on the side table, angled so Tony could see it._

 _Hurry," Allie whimpered. "I don't like this place."_

 _"Shh," Wanda soothed, rubbing her back lightly as she hugged her. That's when she realized. "I gave you the vision earlier, I linked you to it, after we spoke to Mr. Ross," she said, eyes widening. "Oh Allie, I'm so sorry. I never meant to-"_

 _Allie shook her head furiously. "I don't care, I don't care, take me home Wanda please, let's get out of here."_

 _Wanda closed her eyes, and focused._

Wanda opened her eyes and pulled back, absorbing the red energy from Allie's mind as she did so. She wavered, dizzy from the inter-universal trip, and Clint pushed her gently into a chair. "It was my fault," she said, dropping her head into her hands, "it was my fault, I'm so sorry."

Allie stirred, and everyone's eyes snapped to her. She shifted, blinked, and brought up a small fist to rub at her eyes. "Wh'happened?" she asked tiredly. "Daddy?"

"Allie!" He scooped her into a tight hug, his heart bursting with relief. "Allie, are you awake?"

"M'awake," she replied, nodding into his shoulder. "I'm really tired, I had really really really bad dreams..."

He rocked her lightly. "You're fine now, sweetheart. You can rest."

"No more dreams?" she asked.

"No more dreams," Clint promised.

Allie lifted her head. "Where's mommy?"

"I'm here baby," Natasha said, leaning over to hug her. "Everything's fine now."

"Okay." Allie let out a soft sigh, and went back to sleep. Real sleep this time. No dreams.

Clint tucked her into the bed carefully and pressed a kiss to Allie's forehead. "Thank you, Wanda," he said, turning to the young woman.

She looked up, her eyes wet with tears. "But it was my fault," she whispered, stricken. "I-"

"Hey," Clint said firmly, grabbing her hands. "It was an accident, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"And you brought Allie back to us," he continued. He kissed her forehead in a fatherly manner. "Thank you. Now get some rest."

Wanda nodded, and let Vision help her up and lead her out.

A~A~A~A

Allie was grumpy. Those six hours she'd spent in the vision had exhausted her, and now that she was allowed to sleep, _they wouldn't let her go to sleep_. Bruce came in and woke her up with a scan ten minutes later. And everyone came to see for themselves that she was okay, and people kept walking in and out of her room. And Allie just wanted to sleep!

She ignored everyone else, turned into a gecko, crawled under the bed, and with her sticky feet clung to the metal bar. She fell asleep almost instantly.

She woke up eight hours later, back in bed, tucked under the covers. Loki was sitting on the chair, gazing at her steadily. "Hi," she said, and coughed.

"Good afternoon," he said, and leaned forward to help her take a sip of water. "How do you feel?"

"Hungry," Allie decided, after a moment.

Loki quirked a smile. "I would imagine so. I'll go fetch you some breakfast."

"Thank you Loki."

He gave her an elaborate bow. "Milady." He left the room.

A moment later, Thor entered. "I heard you were awake," he said quietly.

Allie held up her arms. "Hug?"

"Always." He sat on the edge of the bed and hugged her tightly. "I am very glad you're safe."

"What happened?" Allie asked.

So Thor told her about Wanda's glimpse into the alternate timeline, and how Allie had been sucked into it, and then how Wanda had brought her back.

Allie sniffed back some tears. "So all that really happened to the other versions of you guys?" she asked.

"Yes it did, I suppose."

Tears began to trickle down her cheeks. "But everyone is so sad," she sniffed. "And everything is all messed up."

Thor hugged her close. "Things will get better for those other versions," he said, and hoped the multiverse didn't make him a liar.

Allie let herself be comforted by Thor's awesome hugs, and when her tummy rumbled, she giggled.

Thor raised an eyebrow. "Was that thunder, somewhere? I didn't call for a storm."

Allie giggled again. "No, it was my stomach."

He cast a disbelieving eye on her. "Your stomach? Your stomach has the power of Thor?" He poked at it gently. "Are you sure it's this stomach?"

She giggled and wriggled as he tickled her.

Loki entered the room bearing pancakes and milk, and all tickle fights were postponed on account of lunch.

A~A~A~A

"Daddy?"

"Yes baby?"

"Where's Wanda?"

Clint raised an eyebrow at her. "She's around somewhere. Why?"

Allie sprawled into his side. "Cuz it's been a whole hour since I got out of the hop-sital and she's the only one who hasn't come to see me."

"And the only one who hasn't given you a present?" Clint asked knowingly, gesturing to the toys and the candy.

Allie huffed indignantly and whacked him on the arm. "No, daddy, not for that. Is she okay? Because that dream-vision-thingy was really scary and I was really scared."

He sobered, and hugged her close. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I love you so much, you know that, right?"

"I know daddy. I love you too." She pressed a kiss to his cheek. "The other-Clint didn't have me, you know."

"He didn't?"

"Nope. That Clint was married to Laura and had Coop and Lila and another baby."

Clint made a face. "That's weird."

"Uh-huh. And mommy was all 'lone."

Clint frowned. "She was, huh?" was all he said aloud.

"Yup. And Steve kissed Sharon. That was gross."

Clint snickered. "Who's Sharon?"

"I don't know." Allie leaned against his chest with a sigh. "And Bucky was in a cryostatic, no, cryo-stasis, tube, and everybody who fought was in Wakanda. Hey daddy, we should go to Wakanda, it'd be really cool."

"We'll get there eventually," Clint murmured. "Why was Bucky in cryo?"

"Because him and Steve went to stop the bad guy from getting the other five supersoldiers," Allie said matter-of-factly.

Clint's heart dropped into his throat again. "What?"

"Yeah, and then them and Tony had a big fight and-"

"No, baby, about the five supersoldiers," Clint said urgently. "Where were they?"

"Russia," Allie replied, and frowned as she tried to remember. "I think Russia. It was really cold and empty, and they were all in ice tubes."

"And who was the bad guy?" Clint asked.

"I don't know."

Clint scooped her up. "All righty, let's go talk to Steve."

"Okay." Allie turned into a bird for easier transport, and they went to go find Steve.

He was speaking to Tony about fund allocation, but they both quit the conversation gladly.

Tony reached out a hand to the sparrow. "Hey, Jack," he said, letting Allie hop onto his palm.

The sparrow tilted its head quizzically.

"Jack, like Jack Sparrow," Tony explained.

"There should be a Captain in there, somewhere," Steve quipped, and looked proud of himself.

Tony snorted. "Somehow I knew you were going to say that."

"Anyway," Clint said, " _Cap_ , we have a problem."

They both stopped joking immediately. "What's up?" Steve asked.

"In the other universe, there were five supersoldiers on par with you or Bucky," Clint said. "Allie saw that they were still in cryostasis somewhere in Russia."

Tony interrupted. "But that's impossible. HYDRA never had samples of the serum."

"Never?" Clint asked.

Steve spoke up slowly. "Tony...we never did find out what the Winter Soldier was sent after in 1991."

"My father's death wasn't enough?" Tony asked harshly.

"They'd left him alive until then," Steve retorted. "What changed? What was he working on?"

"I don't know," Tony said. "Let's find out."

It took them twenty-four hours to completely exhaust every resource. It wasn't written down or recorded anywhere in any SHIELD or HYDRA databases that they'd encountered.

Tony scrubbed at his face with his hands. "Steve, we gotta ask him," he said.

Steve sighed. "I know. I'll speak to him."

When they asked Bucky, he went still. Sniper still, his gaze focused on something no one else could see. "I don't remember," he said. "there's... I remember the mission, but I don't remember why..." He blinked and came back to himself. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right," Steve reassured him. "We'll figure it out."

Tony cleared his throat. "I've been working on something that might help, if we could use it on you and Allie to help your memories."

"What?" Bucky asked.

"BARF," Tony replied.

Steve raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"No really," Tony said. "Binarily Augmented Retro Framing. It's a way to work with traumatic experiences."

"That acronym is a traumatic experience," Bucky told him.

"I know, I really need to change it. FRIDAY gets twitchy every time we work on it. I think that AI has a gag reflex or something." Tony shook his head. "Anyways, it's through the testing phase so it should be okay to use on other people."

Bucky nodded, and then hesitated. "Who's going to be able to see it?"

"You can pick who you want in the room," Tony told him. "As long as it's not me."

Bucky nodded. "Thor, then. In case of things."

"No problem."

The B.A.R.F. worked perfectly. Unfortunately, Bucky remembered everything but the location of the base where the five supersoldiers were stored.

"Is it safe to use on Allie?" Steve asked.

Tony nodded. "It should be fine."

"Should be?" Thor asked dangerously.

"Kids' brains are more elastic," Tony explained. "And they can't focus as well as adults can. The images will jump around a bit, maybe, but it should be fine."

"And it won't hurt?" Steve asked.

"No."

"Great. You can tell Natasha that we need to put Allie in that headset." Steve clapped him on the back.

Tony gulped. "You're the leader. You tell her."

"It's your invention," Steve retorted.

They both looked at Bucky. He snorted. "No."

Clint spoke up from behind them. " _I_ will tell Natasha."

Tony held up a hand. "I'll tell Allie what it means."

He found Allie with Vision, Pietro, Wanda, and Loki, trying to cheer Wanda up. Allie was quite happily hugging the older girl as they ate a bag of chips.

"Stark," Loki said, standing.

"Hey guys. I need to talk to Allie."

"Is this about the puke thing?" Allie asked, not moving from her position sandwiched between the twins.

"BARF," Tony corrected.

"Gross," Pietro said.

Allie frowned. "Do I have to do the thing too?"

Tony nodded. "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but we need your memories of what happened in the dream."

"No," Wanda said, "let me do it."

"Did you see the supersoldiers?" Tony asked.

Wanda glanced away.

"Then we need Allie," Tony said. "I'm sorry."

Allie stood up, her chin tilted defiantly. "I can do it," she announced bravely.

Tony kissed her forehead. "Thank you, munchkin."

A~A~A~A

Natasha was not happy with sticking Allie into any invention that made her relive the vision of the other universe, but she knew they had no choice.

Allie put on the headset, and Tony calibrated it to her brain. Loki sat with her to guide her concentration as she thought of the dream.

"Why is he doing it?" Sam grumped as the rest of the Avengers huddled in the waiting room.

"Because Loki has been training her to keep her mind calm when she shifts into inanimate objects," Bruce replied calmly.

"One of us should be with her," Clint said, his hands twitching nervously.

Natasha placed her hands over his. "It's going to be fine, Clint. She knows we're right here."

Tony flicked a final button. "All right, baby, go ahead."

Allie squinched her whole face, concentrating with all her might. "Okey-dokey arti-chokey."

The blank room began to flicker, and then it resolved into a large room with five cryotubes in it. An unshaven Bucky, a battle-weary Cap, and a bruised Tony also appeared a moment later.

Allie curled into Loki's side. "This is the place. They were fighting."

He stroked her hair. "We're fine, Allie, it's just a memory. You can change it however you like. Take the three of them away, just focus on the room. And the bad guy. Show us the bad guy."

Allie put her hands over her eyes, and frowned. "Uhhhhhh... this guy."

The three superheroes disappeared and a perfectly average man appeared instead.

"This guy," Allie said triumphantly.

Tony slammed the console triumphantly. "Yes! FRIDAY save this session!"

Loki gave Allie a high-five. "Good job, little one."

Tony came in to retrieve the headset. "See, not that bad," he said. "Give me five seconds."

Allie got distracted, and the scene changed.

A battle field appeared.

Allie screamed as beams of energy began to shoot through the air around them. "No no no no!" she shrieked.

Tony yanked the headset off her, and the image disappeared. He grabbed her in a hug. "No, listen to me, it's over," he coaxed, squeezing her tightly. "Everything is fine, it's over, I promise."

Clint and Natasha rushed into the room.

Allie threw herself at her parents and latched onto them both. "Nap," she complained. "I need a nap."

Natasha kissed her cheek. "You can have whatever you want baby. You were so brave." She picked her up. "Come on sweetheart."

A~A~A~A

Allie took a long nap, a nice warm bath, and went back to bed. Very subtly, Vision influenced her dream to include only rainbows and unicorns, and then rejoined the rest of the Avengers.

"You're not going," Steve was telling Bucky flatly.

"Steve-"

"No. What if there's something that makes you turn back?" Steve gave him a Look. "I can't justify going up against six supersoldiers, Buck. I'm sorry. You have to stay here. Whatever else you remember you can feed us from the control room."

Bucky accepted this reasoning with a scowl and stepped back.

Steve, Tony, Vision, and Thor were on the team to get the supersoldiers. Natasha, Clint, Wanda, and Bruce were on the "bad guy" front, looking for the man who destroyed the Avengers. Loki and Pietro were given babysitting duty.

By the time Allie woke up, Baron Helmut Zemo was in the custody of the United Nations and the five aggressive supersoldiers were found dead in their cryotubes.

Everything was going to be fine.

It took Allie a few days to be able to fall asleep peacefully, but the vision/dreams didn't come back, and life continued.

 **A/N: End of cliff-hanger, yay! Next chapter, more Pete-n-Allie shenanigans and fluff :)**


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Spider-man, spider-man, can't keep secrets from anyone, spider-man, spider-man, lots of fluffers in this one! (I made a new theme song)**

"Peter?"

"Yeah?"

"When we're finished can we play outside?"

"On the obstacle course?"

"Yeah."

He nodded. "Sure, why not?"

"Can I bring my robots for training them?"

"Yup." Peter loved remote-controlled robots as much as the next person. "Did you finish your diagram?"

"Yup." Allie showed him the diagram of the complex cell structure. "I gave them happy faces," she informed him.

Peter smiled as he looked over the diagram. "Looks great." His phone rang just as he reached for the curriculum hologram. "Allie can you get that while I look up mitochondria?"

Allie went to get his phone from the outside pocket of his backpack and accidentally dropped the pack, spilling some clothes from inside. A grey pair of sweatpants, a red and blue hoodie, a mask... she picked up the sweatshirt and gasped when she saw the logo on front. "Peter!" she said, bouncing up and down excitedly. "You're-!"

He ran over and clapped a hand over her mouth before she could finish her thought. "Shh, shh, no I'm not!" he whispered frantically. "These are my gym clothes!"

She pulled out a little vial of webbing. "You're Spider-man!" she whisper-screeched back. "That's where you go when you haves to cancel!"

He clutched at his hair and scrubbed his face with his hands and wiped his palms on his legs. He was legit freaking out. "Okay, okay, yes, but, you can't tell anyone, okay?" he coaxed. "Don't tell anyone."

"Why not? You're a _superhero_ -mgh." She frowned as his hand came over her mouth again, muffling her excited words. She licked his hand.

"Ew!" He let go of her and scowled.

She scowled back, little fists propped on her hips.

Sam was just walking in. "Ew what?" he asked, eyeing the two of them. "Tony try and make an omelet again?"

"She licked me!" Peter complained, pointing at Allie. "As a human!"

Sam choked back a snicker. "Allie, come on girl, don't do that. That's nasty."

She pouted. "Fine." She waited till he left the room before rounding on Peter. "Why not!" she demanded.

"Because!" Peter replied, panicking.

"That's not a reason!"

"Yes it is!" He lowered his voice and knelt in front of her, holding her shoulders lightly. "Listen to me, Allie. I like being Spiderman, okay? I need this."

"But it's dangerous without backup," she replied, frowning at him. "Even Steve and Hulk need backups. What if you get hurt?"

"I won't get hurt."

She scowled at him. "Promise?"

"I promise."

"If you get hurt are you gonna tell the Avengers then?"

"Yes," he said solemnly.

"Good." She hugged him tightly. "Don't be stupid, okay, Pete?"

"I won't."

Sam walked in again for something else, and raised an eyebrow at the two of them hugging. "Everything okay?" he asked, eyeing the identical solemn faces.

"Yeah," Allie said, and turned into an alligator.

Peter stood up and grabbed his backpack. "Well, I have to go. I've got a thing tomorrow. I'll see you Thursday, okay?"

The alligator nodded firmly and lashed its tail.

Peter nodded at Sam, and grinned at Allie. "See you later, Allie-gator." He walked off jauntily, trying to cover his nervousness.

Sam looked at the alligator on the floor scuttling towards him. "I love you, baby, but that's freaky."

The alligator snapped its teeth playfully.

Vision was passed by Sam running at high speed as a small alligator chased at his heels. "I don't think I want to know," he said, and continued on his way.

A~A~A~A

Allie texted Peter that night with her tablet. "All safe?" she asked, and added a raised-eyebrow emoji.

The reply came ten minutes later. "All good." And a thumbs-up along with it. "I won't be coming Thursday, I need to follow the burglars to their hideout. Sorry, Allie."

Allie frowned and texted him back, "Be safe. Get lots n lots of sleep so you'll be good tomorrow."

"I will," came the prompt reply. "Night night."

The next morning, Allie informed her parents that Peter had something to do and she would be spending the day in the lab with Tony doing Science!things. Tony didn't even notice her until he turned around and found Allie laying on her stomach on the floor, building holographic molecules.

"Hi, munchkin. Where's Peter?" Tony asked.

"Not here," Allie said placidly. "He had a thing."

"A thing?"

"Uh-huh." Allie continued compiling the molecules. "He thinks he knows where those one burglars are and he's going to go get them. He'll be back tomorrow."

Tony stared at her. "What."

She looked up at him blankly. "What?"

"What?" he said again. "Did you just say he was going after _burglars_?"

Allie's eyes grew huge. "No?"

Tony closed his program and made her face him. "Seriously Allie, what's going on?"

She bit her lip and looked at the ground. "I promised."

"What did you promise?"

"Not to tell that Peter's Spider-man," she whispered.

"What!" he said loudly, shocked.

Allie burst into tears, miserable that she hadn't kept her promise to Peter after only just one day.

Tony panicked and scooped her into his arms. "No, no, baby don't cry, I'm not mad at you."

"Don't be mad at Peter," she implored tearfully.

He kissed her forehead. "I'm not mad at Peter either, I promise."

Steve knocked on the open door to the lab and stuck his head in. "Everything okay?" he asked, his tone light but his eyes concerned.

"Guess what Steve?"

"What, Tony?"

"You know Peter Parker, our friendly neighborhood tutor?"

"Yeah..." Steve frowned. "What did he do? Why's Allie crying?"

"Peter Parker is also our friendly neighborhood Spider-man."

Steve's jaw dropped. "What?"

"That's what I said." Tony handed Allie to Steve. "Hold this emotion, I'm going to do some recon."

Steve smoothed Allie's hair away from her face. "Did you know about this?" he asked gently.

She nodded and sniffled. "I saw the suit in his backpack and figured it out and he asked me not to tell because he had it handled and I promised I wouldn't but I did and now he's gonna be maaaad..." She subsided with a miserable sob into his shoulder.

Steve rubbed her back. "He shouldn't have made you promise to keep it a secret. That kind of secret, where someone could get hurt, is not good."

"You're not mad at him?" she asked.

"No. Just disappointed that he didn't tell us earlier." Steve kissed her forehead. "How about we go find the others, huh?"

"Yeah."

They found Clint first. Allie needed a hug from her daddy, and went into his arms gratefully. Clint just hugged her tight without question. "C'mon," Steve said. "Team meeting."

They assembled, and Tony presented what he and FRIDAY had found so far. "Wait," Wanda said, half-raising a hand. "I thought we knew already."

Everyone turned to stare at her. "You what?" Tony asked in disbelief.

"I thought we knew," Wanda repeated. "That's why he was chosen to tutor Allie, because he is both mutant and intelligent."

"And you never thought to mention this?" Rhodey asked.

"No. I did not see a need. I assumed he was having regular briefings with Tony or Steve."

Steve sighed. "Okay. So we're all spectacularly blind. Now what?"

"Now we check that he really is Spider-man," Tony said, grinning.

Bruce frowned. "That's your evil pranking grin."

"Yes it is, Brucey. Yes it is."

A~A~A~A

Peter sped into the training room at the Avengers compound. "What's going on?!" he asked, breathless, as he faced Steve and Tony. "What's the emergency?"

"Catch," Steve said simply, and from the opposite direction a huge barbell flew towards Peter.

He reacted instantly and caught it, neatly heaving it onto the training mats and whirling to face the others. "What was that!?" he demanded.

Tony looked smug. " _That_ was 500 pounds, Pete. Or should we say, Spider-man?"

Peter's eyes widened and he froze. "Oh," he said weakly. "That. Yeah, ahem, funny story, I've been lifting weights and-"

Something flickered in the corner of his eye and he dodged backwards just as an arrow flew past his nose.

"Superhuman reflexes," Tony said loudly, holding up a finger. "Superhuman strength. Genius-level intellect. If we tossed you at a wall would you stick?"

Peter backed away from Steve cautiously, but answered the question. "Yes."

"And the webs?" Tony asked.

"I engineered them," Peter replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets and slouching inwards protectively.

Steve nodded slowly. "So. You're Spider-man."

"Yeah. I'm Spider-man." Peter sighed. "Did Allie tell you?"

"On accident." Steve gave him the 'disappointed' look. "It was not a nice thing to ask her to keep your secret. She was crying."

Peter's expression turned miserable. "Aw, no, I didn't mean to make her cry. I'm so sorry."

Tony added his own disappointed face. "So why didn't you tell us?" he asked.

Peter huffed. "Because I don't want you to tell me to quit being Spider-man."

"Peter, you're fifteen," Steve said kindly. "The least we can do is help you."

"I can do it," Peter started, "I just need-" He stopped. "Wait. You're going to help me?"

They grinned at him.

Allie was pleased when a month later Spider-man got a new suit and a tiny spider-bot backup. She turned into a tarantula to play with the little bot, and scared the pants off Rhodey on accident.

A~A~A~A

Clint woke up with a weight on his chest. He was surprised, because Natasha wasn't a very cuddly person in her sleep - except it wasn't Nat. It was a small hawk, the size of a blue jay, but perfectly formed with beautiful red and brown plumage, and a little stripe of black across her head.

He smiled and reached up to scratch her neck feathers lightly. "Hey Allie, good morning."

The little hawk blinked awake and crept forward to nuzzle into his neck sleepily.

They lay there for a while, just cuddling, and then Allie turned into her normal self but with reddish purple hair. "How'd you like my hawk?" she asked, curling into his side. "Was it good?"

"It was perfect. I thought you couldn't do full size creatures?"

"Nope. But me'n'Viz figured I could do little full-grown versions. So I did a hawk, because I said I would."

Clint hugged her tightly. "I think you're the best hawk I've ever seen.'

"Cool." She turned into a hawk again and perched on the pillow while Clint got ready for the day.

"Ready punkin?" he asked, holding out an arm.

She ignored his arm and launched into the air above his head, spreading her wings and gliding easily past him.

"How are you doing that?" Clint asked.

FRIDAY answered. "I created an air corridor for her below the air vents so she may glide safely."

"Cool. Good thing we got tall ceilings."

"It was not a coincidence," FRIDAY informed him loftily.

They headed to the common room and Allie made a slightly wobbly landing on the sofa next to her mom. She squawked.

"Hey sweetheart," Natasha said, transferring her cup of tea to her other hand to smooth Allie's feathers.

Vision grinned smugly all day as Allie tested her mini hawk form swooping down on unsuspecting victims and taking items out of their hands. She stole Cap's clean gym towel, Tony's tablet, Bruce's glasses right off his nose, and Thor's Pop-Tart. She almost got Loki's watermelon but he saw her coming. She also managed to steal the TV remote from Clint's hands and changed the channel with her beak.

"No, not History Channel," Clint begged, swiping for it.

She clicked it to Adventure Time.

Clint groaned. "No, never mind. Ancient Egyptian tombs are fine."

Allie looked very smug for a hawk, and settled happily into a pillow.

The nerds of the compound: Steve, Wanda, and Loki, were attracted by the sound of documentary narrative, and joined them in the living room.

Allie scooted over obligingly for Steve, and turned into a panda bear to cuddle with her dad.

"Aww," he said, turning into a gooey-eyed puddle and scooping her up. "Oh my goodness this is your cutest form _ever_ , baby," he cooed, kissing her nose. "Steve look." He held her up in the air, Simba-style.

"Awwww."

Everyone in the room was the definition of heart-eyes as they gazed at Allie, a perfect little 18-inch fully formed panda bear.

Wanda deftly used her powers to pull Allie towards her and give her a hug.

Allie put her paws around Wanda's shoulders and hummed happily.

A click of a camera captured the moment. "That one's going on the wall," Clint announced.

" _I_ want a hug," Steve complained.

Allie lumbered over and snuggled into his side for the rest of the documentary.

Until Bucky came back from his jog, saw the documentary, shoved Steve over to sit down, and settled Allie in his lap. "You're so fluffy I love you," he told the panda bear seriously.

She tapped his nose with a paw. _Love you too, Bucky_.

Steve suddenly grinned. "Oh look. Bucky, with a bear! Clint! Picture!"

A~A~A~A

School started a week later, and Allie became a full-time commuter from upstate to the Tower, and sometimes she and her parents stayed overnight.

Peter split his time between school and training with the Avengers, only occasionally showing up to play with Allie. But she was immensely proud of him, and spent her time playing and learning with kids closer to her age.

 **A/N 2: We're coming up on big stuff... lots of things to foreshadow and prep and interweave... please be patient while I try not to shoot myself in the foot, and try not to copy what I already did in** ** _Shakespeare has a quote for everything_** **. Thanks for reading, y'all!**


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: Hello! Short chapter before getting into movie plot-ness. Some growing up to do..**

There was something mysterious going on. Everybody was very solemn, and every time Allie came into a room they changed the conversation. She _knew_ they were hiding something, a big mission or _something_ , and it was kind of scaring her.

So, she went to Clint. "Hey daddy?"

"Yes peanut?" he asked, not pausing in his chin-ups.

"What's goin' on?"

He didn't bat an eye. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Is there a mission thing going on? Why is everyone acting funny?"

He faltered in one of his chin-ups. "Sweetheart, I really can't tell you anything about it."

"Is it really bad?" she asked, her voice quavering.

"I'm sorry Allie, it's classified."

She huffed. "Fine."

He dropped down to the floor. "I'll take you to the park if you want," he offered.

"Nah, I'm gonna go downstairs to school and play on the Wii with Jake and Akira."

"Okay, have fun."

A~A~A~A

The situation persisted for two more days. Allie asked Steve and he told her the same thing - he couldn't tell her. So did Pietro, and even Thor.

"I am not a baby," Allie grumbled into the fur of Bucky Bear as she quietly sulked in her room. "I'm a whole seven years old."

"A human is not fully mature until they are twenty-four years old," FRIDAY informed her.

Allie scowled. "Whatever, FRIDAY."

"I'm just saying."

The next day, Allie had a date with Maria to go to a tea shop and have a proper High Tea with all the little cakes. Maria left her in the office while she went to get her coat.

Allie looked at the computer. It was still on and logged in. She could look up the latest mission details... _No,_ she scolded herself, _not good_. But Maria wasn't coming back and the curiosity was killing her...

She touched the screen.

Within a minute she found the details, and they made her want to cry. Coulson's new team, the ones he'd traded for the Avengers, was having trouble with these people who were like mutants but not, and there was a whole undercover op going on - Black Widow was on the roster. Mommy was going away for three whole weeks and the whole big plan was going to take _months_.

Allie's eyes filled with tears. She didn't want her mom in "Intermediate Danger."

Her little brain spun its wheels frantically as she thought about it. Maybe someone from SHIELD could go instead. But the only ones who could change the orders were Steve or Coulson.

Allie glanced around nervously, and then faced the computer. She wasn't supposed to really do this, but this was an emergency. She shifted her vocal cords to match Steve's voice, and spoke. "FRIDAY, authorize a roster change from Black Widow to someone on Coulson's team."

The info on the screen changed. Allie hit save, and scooted away from the computer, her heart hammering and feeling really weird. But her mommy was going to be okay.

Suddenly the screen came on; a video chat from Coulson. "Steve?" he asked as soon as the call initialized. "Why did you change the plans?"

Allie let out a shriek of surprise and bolted away. She ran right past Maria in the hall and turned into a moth. She fluttered into one of the air vents, and made her way to a junction that she'd never been in before to hide. She turned into a hamster and huddled miserably in a corner. Now she was going to be in trouble...

A~A~A~A

"FRIDAY, where's Allie going?" Maria asked, going into her office. She noticed hte screen. "Coulson? What's up?"

"Where's Cap?" he asked, confused.

"Not here?" Maria said, equally confused. "What's going on?"

"I don't know. I got an alert that Steve changed the plan and called to ask him about it- the order came from your computer, but the only one there was Allie and she ran off."

"I passed her in the hall," Maria confirmed. She frowned. "Do you think she did something?"

"That requires voiceprint authorization," Coulson said, shaking his head. And then he sighed. "But she is a shapeshifter."

"FRIDAY, where's Allie?" Maria asked.

"Unknown," FRIDAY replied.

Maria looked up sharply. "What do you mean?"

"I cannot track any of her known biosignatures," FRIDAY replied.

Coulson frowned. "Call me back when you figure out what's going on," he told Maria.

"Yeah." Maria pinched the bridge of her nose. "FRIDAY, get Barton down here."

She explained the situation to Clint, and he grumbled under his breath. "We should have just told her what was going on. Now who knows where she is and what she's pretending to be."

"Go find her," Maria told him, shooing him out of her office. "Recruit as many people as you need."

"Thanks."

They searched for two hours. Allie was nowhere to be found. FRIDAY swept the compound for any unauthorized life-signs, animal, plant, or otherwise, but found nothing.

"She must be pretending to be something inanimate," Clint said worriedly.

"She's probably worried she's gonna be in trouble," Bucky said matter-of-factly.

"Won't she come back when she gets hungry?" Pietro asked.

Bucky gave him an unimpressed look. "Have you _seen_ her? She's almost as stubborn as Steve."

"Hey!"

"You know it's true," Bucky told his best friend.

"Whatever."

So Pietro was sent through the vents at middling speed, calling "Allie, Allie you're not in trouble, can you come out please?"

An hour and a half later, Allie's biosignature popped up on the scan. She was in the vents.

They all looked at Clint. "It's your kid," Steve said, shrugging.

Clint took a deep breath, and climbed into the vent. It took a few minutes to get to Allie's location, but when he did, he found her curled into a little ball, looking scared and guilty. His heart melted. "Aw, baby..."

She burst into tears. "I'm sorryyyyy," she wailed.

Clint wished he had enough room to hug her. He settled for patting her foot. "Listen to me, Allie, we're not mad. No one's angry, it's gonna be okay. Can we get out of the vents now, and talk about it?"

Reluctantly, she nodded.

He slid backwards out of the vent, and caught her as she dropped out. Thankfully, everyone had left, and they had the room to themselves. Clint carried her over to the sofa, and sat down with her in his lap. "You all right?" he asked, rubbing her back. "You're not hurt?"

She shook her head.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

Another negative headshake.

He frowned. It'd been at least five hours since she'd eaten anything. "Are you just saying that because you don't want to be a bother?" he asked.

A tiny head shake 'yes'.

He sighed. "Okay. Let's talk real quick and then have some dinner, okay?" He sat her on the sofa next to him, and faced her. "Did you go into classified files?" he asked her.

She nodded tearfully.

"And you changed the mission roster?"

Another nod.

"Allie, what you did was wrong," he said firmly. "You know you're not supposed to do either of those things."

She started crying again.

He hated this. He _hated_ seeing her cry. But this was important. He scooped her back into his arms and held her close. "Why did you do it?" he asked, smoothing her tangled hair away from her face.

"I didn't want mommy to go away and be in danger," she mumbled sadly into his shoulder.

"Oh, sweetheart."

"I'm sorry," she sniffled.

He kissed her hair. "Thank you for apologizing," he said. "I'm sorry, too, for not telling you anything at all and making you worry." He smiled at her. "Mommy's going to be fine on this mission, munchkin. Intermediate danger is just a little bit, and your mommy's the best, right?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." He gave her a serious look. "But I need your absolute promise on this, Allie. You won't break into classified files to look at them or to change them. Promise?"

She nodded. "I promise. I won't do it never, _ever_ again."

He hugged her again. "Good girl. Now how about some food?"

Her stomach growled.

He smiled, and lifted her up. "That sounded like a yes to me," he said.

She managed a small giggle.

He made her a sandwich, and they ate together at the counter. "Do you feel better?" he asked her, once they'd washed their dishes.

"Yeah, lots."

"Good." He gave her a look. "Now. No more electronics for the rest of the evening, all right? That means no robots, either."

"Okay."

"Good. And listen to me." He made sure she was looking at him. "If you break your promise, Allie, not to snoop into classified files, there will be no computers at all without absolute supervision until you earn our trust back. You understand?"

A very solemn nod. "I understand."

"Good girl." He hugged her. "I love you very much, Allie."

"I love you too," she whispered.

He kissed her forehead. "Okay. Serious talk is over, sweetheart. You can go play."

She clung to his neck. "Can you play with me?"

"I would love to."

Natasha came home later that evening. Clint told her about the incident. Natasha was both touched that Allie would do that for her, and impressed by her voice-mimicking skills. "That will definitely be useful later on," she mused.

Clint gave her a Look.

"But not appropriate at all in this circumstance," she amended. She spent the rest of the evening with Allie, reassuring her that the mission would go just fine.

The next day, Allie apologized to Steve and Maria, and they forgave her. Steve gave her one of his best hugs, and said, "We all make mistakes. The best thing to do is try to never make that mistake again, now that you know why it was wrong."

She nodded. "Never."

And that was that. Allie determined to try not to break any more rules, ever. Except the 'no cookies after nine pm' rule. That was just silly. Cookies were the _best_ after nine pm. That was how cookies worked.

 **A/N 2: Next chapter in the works. In the meantime, I've finally finished and posted the Avengers/Star Trek TOS crossover with Allie. It's called When Fictional Worlds Collide, and you can find it on my profile. Thanks for reading!**


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: Yes, hello, *sheepish grin* Sorry for the lateness. This story's been giving me difficulties, and I've been working on some Star Trek and Stargate SG1 stories that I want to post eventually. Anyhow. Here's this chapter.**

 **Spoilers for Spiderman: Homecoming and Thor: Ragnarok, as much as I've gleaned from the trailers.**

 **EDIT 10/21/2017: Thanks to loyal reviewers I realized that doc manager ate the first part of the chapter which contained the end bit of Spiderman, so... here it is :)**

ONE YEAR LATER:

"I now pronounce you Provisional Member of the Avengers," Steve announced, mock-grandly, as he pinned an Avengers souvenir medal to Peter's chest, and the assembled Avengers cheered.

Allie threw confetti into the air gleefully.

"You are cleaning that up," Wanda muttered to Pietro, who was Allie's confetti-accomplice.

Two days after Peter was officially on the roster, he accidentally discovered a black-market alien weapons distributor.

"This is small potatoes," Steve reassured the teen. "Let us hand it to the FBI, and you worry about your school."

"Does that mean I can do actual stuff during the summer?" Peter asked eagerly.

"Missions in the summer, friendly neighborhood spidey in the meantime," Tony promised him.

"Cool."

The gang was rounded up, just as the last Avengers things were being shipped to the compound upstate. Allie would now be shuttling up with one guardian who had business at Stark Tower. It was Stark Tower, again. So basically, she went back and forth on Pepper's schedule. Mostly her dad took her, or Tony sometimes, but mostly Pepper. Allie was a whole eight years old, after all, and could handle commuting like a grown-up.

So when the Stark-Potts marriage was finally announced (they'd delayed Spider-man's announcement since he was still underage), Allie had a front seat to all the crazy reporters.

"That's a lot of cameras," she said, sticking her nose to the glass to count all the flashes going off.

Pepper tugged her away from the window of the office. "Come away from there unless you want your boogers in the news," she teased.

Allie giggled. "Eww."

A~A~A~A

SIX MONTHS LATER:

"What do you mean, you're leaving?" Allie asked Thor and Loki.

They gave her identical guilty looks. "I must return to Asgard, and Loki is on probation," Thor explained. "We will be back in a while."

"How long is a while?"

"When we have finished," Thor said.

Allie pouted. "That's too long."

Thor swept her up in a hug and kissed her cheek. "My dear Allie, the time will fly by. You will not even notice we've gone."

She sank into his arms (Thor's hugs were the best), and sighed, resigned to losing two of her playmates and family members. She looked over at Loki. "Behave," she admonished him. "That way you get to come back."

Loki bowed over her hand and kissed it like a gentleman, making her giggle. "I swear," he said, winking at her.

"Ready guys?" Bruce asked, entering the room with a duffel bag over his shoulder.

Allie's jaw dropped. "You're leaving too?!"

"Just for a bit," he assured her, giving her a hug. "Thor wants me to look over some Asgardian technology. How could I say no?"

"Why aren't you taking Jane?" Allie asked Thor.

He gave her a grin. "She has to finish her project before she can join us."

"You're not taking Darcy too, are you?" Allie asked, horrified. "Who's gonna be Bucky's girlfriend?"

Thor snickered. "No, Darcy is not joining us."

"Good." Allie regarded them seriously. "Come back soon. And bring me a present?"

"Yes, my lady," Thor said, giving her a final squeeze before setting her down on the carpet.

Loki pulled the radio tree carving out of thin air, making her gasp. "And remember, you will be able to hear the music of the world tree, and thus of Asgard, from this." He placed it in her palm. "I found it in the library where you'd lost it."

She kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Loki." Clutching the music box tightly, she waved with her free hand as they walked outside and were swept up by the Bifrost, leaving a stamp on the grass.

Tony swooped in a second later, hollering, "NOT ON THE GRASS- Why do I even bother."

Allie giggled. "Too late!"

He ruffled her hair. "Too slow," he agreed. "Did you see 'em off?"

"Yup."

A~A~A~A

Now that her world tree radio tuner was found (she still didn't have a good name for it...), Allie spent a lot of time listening to it as she did her schoolwork. It was soothing, and sometimes it was exciting, but sometimes it was sad, or happy. The universe had very complicated music, she decided.

Then one day, it sounded like the orchestra had broke. It was a terrible screeching, staticky sound, and it made her feel worried. Really, really, worried. So she took it to Tony. "Tony, I think the universe is broken," she informed him, handing him the radio.

He took it with an indulgent smile. "What makes you say..." his eyes unfocused as he heard it, "that..."

"You hear it too right?" Allie asked urgently. "The screechy bits?"

"Yeah, I do... FRIDAY, pull up the satellites, and get Jane Foster on the line."

"Yes, Mr. Stark."

Allies sat at the workbench and watched Tony for a little bit, and then finally ventured, "So... what's goin' on?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. Why don't you go play, and I'll hold onto this until I figure it out, okay?"

She hovered reluctantly, worried about Thor and Loki and Bruce. "How about, I hold onto it, and when it changes I tell you?" she suggested.

Tony glanced at the anxious little girl. "Well, I suppose, since I can't get any readings from it. But as soon as the music changes you come tell me, or tell FRIDAY, okay?"

"Okay." Allie grabbed the universe music box and zoomed from the lab. She slipped into her room, and dragged her blankets and pillows over to the corner to make a nest. She held the tuner in both palms, and waited for the music to go back to normal.

It was weird for three whole days. She shifted herself into a three-handed person to be able to hold it. She slept with it, ate with it, bathed with it, and flatly refused to do any schoolwork because she was concentrating on the universe.

"I think we need to take it away from her," Natasha told Clint on the third day. "She's starting to get obsessed."

"Tony said that the dimension they think is Asgard is going crazy, so something really bad is happening," Clint replied quietly. "Steve's even thinking of going to Dr. Strange, or Reed, to find a way to get up there."

"What, and in the meantime Allie walks around with two hands sticking out of her left elbow?" Natasha asked.

"Good point. You do it."

"Why me?"

"You're more persuasive."

Natasha rolled her eyes at him, and walked over to Allie. "Any change?" she asked gently, sitting down beside her.

"Not yet." Allie didn't take her eyes off it.

"What if we give it to Tony until it changes back?" Natasha suggested.

"No, it's okay," Allie replied.

"Honey, you're just gonna make yourself worried if you don't take a break," Natasha said gently.

"I'm not worried that much," Allie said, sparing her a glance. "Thor's winning."

Natasha frowned. "How can you tell?"

"If I have the brain of an Asgardian it's easier to tell what the music says," Allie explained matter-of-factly. "That bit, the trumpety one, is Thor. He's in it a lot, and that drum one, is Hulk, and he's stronger than anything, so I think they're winning. And I'm 92% sure that the flute noise is Loki, and he's helping."

"92%, huh?" Natasha asked, slightly amused.

"Yup. There's a harp, too, she sounds pretty, kind of like you would sound maybe, and then there's a screechy one. I think she's the bad guy. Um, girl. Look mommy." She reached out with her right hand and put Natasha's hand on the radio tuner, and pressed her small hand on top of hers. "Can you hear it?"

Natasha listened, and she heard it. There was a full-blown symphony going, apparently, but with some work she could distinguish trumpets, drums, a flute, a harp, and the terrible screeching. "I see," she said quietly.

"Yeah. It's fine, mommy."

Natasha gathered her up into her lap and held her close, resting her chin on the girl's bright blue hair. "If everything's going to be fine, can you take a pause maybe, and I'll play with you?" she bargained.

"No thanks mommy, I'm good." Allie settled further into Natasha's hold. "We can snuggle though, while I wait."

Natasha gave Clint a raised eyebrow. _Now what?_

He shrugged.

Later that night Allie jumped into her parents' bed, scaring them both. "It's over, it's over, it's all good now!" she declared triumphantly, bouncing on the bed between them. "There's no more static!" She flopped onto the bed, and handed Natasha the radio. "You can hold it now if you want." She fell asleep thirty seconds later.

"Allie?" Clint asked quietly, tapping her shoulder.

Allie turned into a chocolate Labrador puppy and didn't wake.

"Okay then," Clint said, amused, moving her under the covers with them. "I guess the crisis is over."

Two weeks later Bruce came back, looking tired but pleased. "So, Loki's daughter tried to usurp the throne of Asgard," he announced, dropping his duffel bag on the counter. "We won, obviously."

"Cool," Pietro offered.

"Wait," Wanda said, lifting her head from her book, "Loki has children?"

"Uh-huh."

"I did not see that coming," Pietro muttered. His eyes widened. "Does Thor have children?"

Bruce shrugged. "He didn't say."

A red fox skidded around the corner and jumped over a coffee table, turning into a frantic, red-headed Allie, who barreled into Bruce's arms with a small "oomph."

He hugged her tightly and kissed her hair. "Hey, sweetheart."

"I'm really glad you're back," she said, words muffled in his shoulder. "Where's Thor'n'Loki?"

"In Asgard, doing cleanup," he replied, propping her on his hip. "Where's Steve?"

"Training with Bucky and daddy."

"All right. Let's go say hi, okay?"

"Okay." Reluctantly, she slid to the floor, and grabbed his hand instead. "Let's go."

Bruce checked in with the leader of the Avengers, and Steve welcomed him back. The news spread, and Jane and Tony arrived promptly from the city to debrief him. Bruce's story was, frankly, ridiculous, but they had won against Hela and Asgard was more or less intact.

"No more off-world-ing," Allie admonished him sternly, afterwards.

Bruce chuckled. "No more off-world-ing," he promised, and they pinky swore on it.

A~A~A~A

Rhodey walked in to the living room to find Steve staring at something on the coffee table. "Steve?" he asked, wondering if there was a bee inside again.

"Huh?" Steve asked, attention still on the object.

Rhodey walked all the way over, and realized that Steve was staring at a Rubik's cube on the table - it was slowly solving itself, turning over and sliding around on the table. "Allie?" he asked after a second.

"Yup." Steve held up the real Rubik's cube in his hands. "She wanted to try and solve it by herself."

"So she became the cube?" Rhodey asked, smirking. "Very Zen of her."

"Yeah." Steve grinned as the Rubik's cube gave one final spin and all the pieces fell into place. "Excellent job, Allie!"

The cube morphed back into a small girl, and she hugged Steve tightly. "I did it!" she cheered, doing a victory dance around the living room.

They watched her, grinning, and then Rhodey realized something. "Aren't you kind of small for an eight year old, kiddo?"

She paused mid-air guitar riff to contemplate this. "I don't think so?" she asked uncertainly. "What's a regular eight-year-old size, Rhodey?"

"I don't know but I'm pretty sure it's taller than that."

Allie suddenly found the carpet very interesting. "It's just, being smaller is easier for cuddling," she admitted, after a moment of digging her toe into the plush carpet.

"So what's your actual size, baby?" Steve prompted.

She grew a few inches both lengthwise and widthwise, but she was still a skinny eight-year-old. After a moment, she also shifted her hair to a soft honey brown, and let it fall halfway down her back. "There," she decided, "I think this is me."

"Forty-eight inches," Steve decided, and lifted her up briefly. "Fifty pounds. Seems all right to me." He knelt in front of her and chucked her chin gently. "You know we're super strong, right, Allie? It doesn't matter how small or not small you are, you're still the perfect size for cuddles." He picked her up and swung her into a piggyback ride as proof. "Now, how about a snack? Growing children and super soldiers need their snacks."

Allie clung to his back and giggled. "I don't think you're gonna grow much more, Steve."

A~A~A~A


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: I'm not dead! Just, permanently exhausted and working on NaNoWriMo. Don't ask how that's going, either, thanks :) Also, went to see Thor:Ragnarok, and it was hilarious.**

 **EDIT 11/17/17: Also, hey look at the date! ALSO, thanks to WinterSoldier88 for correction about sister/daughter, you'll see in a minute lol. That's what you get for watching the movie and then trying to write a chapter...**

 **Anyways, here we are, leading into Infinity Wars...**

Allie had obstacle course training on Mondays. Natasha and Steve would build the course in the training room, and then she would have to master the obstacle course as her normal self, as best she could. Then a ten-minute water break, and then she'd have to do the obstacle course again, this time using as many different shapeshifts as she needed, to find the most efficient combination of forms. She liked Mondays the best.

On Tuesdays, training was gymnastics and hand-to-hand. The day after that, Allie would do target practice with Clint (she had a child-sized bow and arrow with special purple arrows), and she'd also learn how to be a ninja and blend into the background and walk quietly, and stuff like that. Thursdays was dance lessons with mommy and Wanda. And the day after that was shapeshifting control with Bruce or Hulk. Slowly, Allie was learning to hold larger forms for longer time. And then on the weekends she could play all day and do whatever she wanted. Her favorite thing to do was sit on one of the guys while they did pushups, or cling to their back while doing chin-ups. That was always fun.

Sometimes Pietro would run her down to the ice cream shop in Queens when mommy wasn't looking. And then Allie would bring her mom some raspberry swirl as an apology.

Clint was not allowed to tell his daughter that Natasha and Pietro orchestrated these "runaways."

A~A~A~A

Allie turned nine, and the universe turned upside down. She was at the Tower, doing math with her classmates, when the sky turned dark. It was 11:30 in the morning, on a summer's day.

Allie dropped her math work and ran to the window. "FRIDAY!" she called, craning her neck to the sky. "What's going on!"

"There is a fleet of ships in orbit," FRIDAY replied, sounding shaken for an AI. "Mrs. Stark is on her way to you, Miss Barton."

"What about the rest of them?" Allie asked, glancing at her classmates, who were beginning to panic and cry. "Calm down!" she yelled. "Can't you see there's something going on!"

The evacuation alarm sounded a second later, and the teachers began to usher everyone down to the bunker at the base of the Tower.

"No!" Allie said, to her teacher. "Pepper's coming to get me."

Pepper arrived at that second, a pillar of calm in a flood of scared children. "They're allies," she told the group, giving them a small smile. "It's going to be fine." She took Allie's hand. "Come on, sweetheart, we've got to go."

The two of them met Happy and Rhodey on the quinjet level, and they took off for the facility. Rhodey, as Iron Patriot, flanked them as they flew. "What's going on?" Allie asked, climbing into Pepper's lap for comfort.

Pepper kissed her hair. "Some organization called the Nova Corps, from another planet."

"What do they want?"

"Asylum," Pepper replied.

Allie shivered. "From what?"

"I don't know." Pepper hugged her tightly. "It's going to be okay."

When they got to the facility, there was a trashy looking spaceship on the front lawn, and two little spaceships from the bigger ones in the sky.

Happy turned back to look at them. "We're being ordered to the aux hangar, and then the conference room."

"All right. And Allie?"

"Her too."

Allie clutched Pepper's hand tightly as they landed in the auxiliary hangar. "Are we going to meet aliens, Pep?"

"I don't know, baby."

The quartet walked to the conference room and the first thing Allie saw was a giant tree, a raccoon, a green woman, and a man with a cool leather jacket. And a gold woman in a blue uniform. And a woman with HUGE eyes, and a man that looked like a mini Hulk, but red. He had no shirt on.

Allie made a beeline for her dad, and Clint swung her onto his hip. "Who are they?" she whispered.

"The Guardians of the Galaxy," he replied. "Apparently they're here to warn us against this bad guy named Thanos that's trying to get all the Infinity Stones. He destroyed these guys' home planet."

"Oh okay," she whispered back.

The raccoon pointed to Allie. "Wait, wait, why is there a useless dwarf here?" he demanded.

Allie blinked at him. "I'm not a dwarf."

"Yes, you are, you're like half his size."

She frowned. "I'm a kid, I'm _supposed_ to be half his size."

He held up a hand, er, paw. "Wait, let me rephrase. What's a useless kid doing here?"

"Rocket!" the guy in the leather jacket hissed. "Shut up!"

Allie wriggled down to the floor, and transformed into a tall dragon with wings and spikes briefly, before transforming into a taller version of herself. "I'm not useless," she informed him, glaring at him.

The aliens looked impressed.

"That's so cool," the guy in the leather jacket said. "I'm Peter Quill, ignore the crazy raccoon."

"I'm Allie," she said, and walked up to the tree. "You're _awesome_."

"I am Groot," the tree replied, reaching out with a small branch to pat her on the head.

She concentrated, and shapeshifted into a small version of him. "I am Groot?" she asked.

The tree smiled. "I am Groot," he agreed.

"Not that this isn't a touching sight, because it is," the raccoon said, and climbed onto the tree's shoulder, "but we have things to do, like, save the _universe_."

Allie retreated, in regular form, to her dad's side.

Quill turned back to Steve. "So, that's basically the gist of it. We need the other Infinity Stones and your android."

"And that guy's arm," Rocket added, pointing to Bucky's arm.

The green woman slapped his paw down. "No, we don't."

"Okay, no we don't. But we do need the android."

"Wait, why?" Allie asked, forgetting she wasn't really supposed to talk.

"Because there's a madman bent on killing everyone in the universe, and he needs the Infinity Stones to do it. Well, he doesn't need them, he's crazy powerful, but they'll help him. And apparently, two of them are here. And we have the other two, so that makes four."

"Five," Thor announced, walking in with his brother, and a very familiar blue cube held in a clear container. "Greetings, all. Heimdall saw you meeting, and we decided it was time to bring this back."

Vision stepped forward. "I have one, Dr. Strange has the other one, where's the third?"

"Your daughter knows," came a voice, and it was followed by Dr. Strange stepping from a green portal, his necklace glowing brightly. "Hello."

Allie backed away from the Time stone. "Nope," she whispered. "Been there, done that, got the T-shirt."

Dr. Strange looked at her and smiled mysteriously. "Yes, you did, didn't you?"

Everyone looked at Allie.

She hid behind Clint's legs.

The green woman stepped forward. "How did you do that?" she asked. "It took all five of us to use the Orb for one minute, and it nearly killed all of us."

Allie shrugged. "I don't know," she whispered, suddenly scared. "I was just holding it."

The gold woman in the blue uniform stepped over and ran a scanner over her. "Human, with mutant DNA," she declared. "Not a Celestial or an Eternal. Pity."

Clint moved in front of Allie, shielding her. "And _not_ part of this discussion," he said firmly.

"Actually," Loki said, clearing his throat, "I have a theory about that."

They all turned to look at him. "Well?"

"Allie is a mutant," Loki said simply. "A mutant shapeshifter."

"Okay... And?"

"She has the genes, the direct line of shapeshifting descent, of En Sabah Nur."

"Who is that?" Quill asked.

"The first mutant," Steve said, his eyes widening. "The most powerful of them all." He turned to look at Bruce. "I thought you typed her DNA."

"I don't have a sample of Apocalypse's DNA, nobody does," Bruce said, looking shaken. "But all mutants, the X-gene comes from him, so, yes, Allie does have that."

"It's possible that she automatically transformed into a being capable of holding the Time stone," Loki continued. "Her mutant ability is largely defensive."

"So what, we're just gonna give her one of these and hope she doesn't die?" Rocket asked.

"NO!" came the unanimous chorus from all the Avengers in the room.

"Give her the Time stone," Loki said impatiently. "She's held it before, she can do it again."

"This is not a toy," Dr. Strange said.

"Yes I know that. Do you?"

Dr. Strange made a face, and slipped the necklace over his head. He pointed out the clasp on the side, and handed the entire thing to Allie.

She tried to hand it back. "No, I don't want to," she said, terrified of going back or forward in time.

"Shh," he said, reaching forward and tapping her forehead. "Calm..."

Allie took a deep breath, and clicked open the clasp. The Time Stone tumbled into her palm, and she looked at it curiously. "It's not doing anything."

"Just don't drop it, sweetheart," Clint murmured behind her.

The woman from the Nova Corps waved the scanner again. "She's holding the state of an Eternal," she whispered, awed.

"What does that mean?" Natasha demanded, her tone like ice.

"Thanos, the one after the stones, is an Eternal," Gamora explained. "The Celestials created the Eternals. They're able to control massive amounts of power."

"And that's what gave humans the ability to have mutants in the first place, starting with Apocalypse," Quill continued.

"Can she control it?" Drax asked.

"It doesn't matter. We're not asking a nine-year-old to wield an Infinity Stone, no matter how much potential she has," Steve said firmly. "Allie, put it back in the necklace."

She placed the Time stone back, and handed the necklace to Dr. Strange. "So, what does that mean?" she asked, worried. "Am I gonna turn into an alien?"

Natasha knelt to hug her. "No, baby. You're just, really, really powerful."

Allie clung to her mother. "I want to help."

"Maybe she can hang onto one of these," Quill said, gesturing to the stones in the room.

"Hold up," Tony said, pointing at Dr. Strange. "You said you knew where the last one is."

Dr. Strange nodded, and looked at the two Asgardians. "Your eldest sister knows where it is," he said. "She had it, once upon a time."

"Considering her title, I'm not surprised," Loki mused.

Thor nodded grimly. "We will return to Asgard and procure the location."

"So, wait, what are we going to do with all six stones?" Peter asked.

"A preemptive strike?" Bucky suggested. "If Thanos is coming for them, we can beat him at his own game."

"We don't have a gauntlet," Quill pointed out. "There's no way to combine them."

Loki held up a hand. "Actually, there is a gauntlet, in the vault. On Asgard."

Gamora nearly choked. "There's _TWO_?"

Steve held up a hand. "Okay. Here's what we're gonna do."

"Wait, who put you in charge?" Rocket asked.

"Dude, this is _Captain America_. He's in charge," Quill stressed. "Definitely in charge."

Steve nodded in thanks. "Prime Minister, your people can seek asylum here, although it might not be the safest place since Thanos is probably coming straight here."

"No. We will stay and fight. This seems to be the only way it will end. And your space navy is severely lacking."

"We don't have one," Sam informed her.

"that makes it even more imperative that we stay and fight."

Steve looked at the Asgardians. "Thor, Loki, leave us the Tesseract and go back to Asgard. Bring Vision with you, to read Hela's mind. Send us a message when you get the location of the Soul stone. If you can get it yourselves, send Vision back to us. We're going to need all our heavy hitters on Earth to defend the Infinity Stones."

Thor nodded.

Quill and Gamora stepped forward. "Let us go with you. We've got a ship, and contacts."

Steve nodded.

"Great. We'll take one of your Nova ships," Quill said.

The Prime Minister glared at him. "You said you had a ship."

"Well yeah, but that's gotta stay here to protect the rest of the stones. We need one to get around in."

"Very well."

Those five left, and Steve looked at the rest of them critically. "And we'll hold the fort."

"Just wait for Thanos to show up, like a bunch of-"

Three different pairs of hands clapped over Allie's ears before the raccoon could finish speaking. "Dollar in the jar!" she said loudly, due to the three pairs of hands over her ears.

"The heck's a dollar?" was the first thing she heard.

Allie giggled despite herself.

A~A~A~A

Vision came back from Asgard two hours later, carrying the Gauntlet. "It is a fake, but we think it might work. The actual Gauntlet is merely something to hold the stones with, and this will do the same thing. The Soul stone is in Niflheim. The others have gone to retrieve it."

"How long is that gonna take, do you think?" Tony asked.

Vision shook his head. "She embedded it in a labyrinth in the center of that realm. It may take some time."

"Great," Bucky said, "we'll just defend the Earth from the Mad Titan, or whatever he's called."

"That is very apt," Mantis said.

Steve came in, speaking to T'Challa over the phone. "Yes. Yes we will, thank you." He hung up, and looked at Clint and Natasha. "T'Challa has offered to let us send Allie and most of the civilians from Xandar to Wakanda."

The two spies shared a glance. Allie would be safe there, safer than she would be here, surrounded by Infinity Stones and people that might try to force her to wield them. Clint nodded. "That's the best place for her right now."

Allie, when told of the plan, gave them a flat, "No."

"Allie, it's not safe here," Clint said, kneeling to face her.

"No. I wanna stay with you." She hid her face in his shoulder. "What if I can help?"

Clint smoothed her hair. "Sweetheart, you're nine years old. You shouldn't have to worry about any of this."

Allie started to cry. "I am worried, though, about you, and mommy, and Steve, and Thor, and the whole universe! What if you _die_?"

"Oh, sweetheart..." He hugged her tightly, but Clint couldn't promise that no one would die. And Allie knew that. "I'm sorry, baby, but the greatest help you could be, is be safe," he said softly, kissing her head. "That would make our jobs much easier, knowing you were safe."

"And you'll be careful?" she asked, voice muffled in his chest.

"We'll be as careful as we can," Clint said. "I promise."

Allie shook her head. "I don't want to go, but-" her voice broke. "I'll go. So you can save the world."

Clint forced the tears down, and shared a glance with Natasha. "Thank you, sweetheart," he breathed, shuffling to the side so Natasha could hug her as well. "Mommy and I will go with you, okay, make sure you have everything you need. And then we'll have to come right back, okay?"

She clung to Natasha like a leech, tears running down her face. "Okay. Can I, can I say bye to everyone?"

Natasha kissed her forehead. "There's a little more time," she assured her. "Go ahead."

Allie's goodbyes to all the Avengers made everyone cry, and she made them promise to try their hardest not to die. Then, Clint packed her little suitcase that looked like R2D2, and they boarded a quinjet, flying in formation with the refugee jets going to Wakanda. A SHIELD agent piloted the quinjet so the spies could have all the time they needed with their daughter.

Allie sat in between her parents, holding tight to Natasha's hand, and Clint holding onto both of them.

"Is T'Challa going with you too?" Allie asked, after a few minutes.

"No, he's going to stay in Wakanda, and coordinate with us from there."

"Can we talk on the video?" Allie asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, of course, baby." Clint kissed her cheek. "We'll call you every day, all right?"

"Okay." She hid her face in his chest. "I don't want you to fight."

"I know, sweetheart. But someone has to."

Allie sniffed. "I know." She transferred her hug to Natasha. "But you're the best-est of the best and the whole world needs you."

Natasha kissed her. "We're not doing this for the whole world, baby, we're doing this to keep _you_ safe."

Allie started to cry.

Clint wrapped an arm around both of them. "Shh, sweetheart, it's going to be okay."

When they landed in Wakanda, Allie had a death-grip on her parents, and they didn't look like they were going to let go anytime either.

T'Challa met them and the other refugees on the tarmac, and gave the trio a compassionate gaze. "You'll have nothing to worry about while she is here," he reassured the anxious parents.

Natasha nodded, and very reluctantly, pried Allie's grip from herself. "I love you, sweetheart," she said, meeting Allie's tearful gaze.

"I love you too mommy," Allie sobbed, still clinging to Clint.

Clint gave her a hug and kissed her forehead. "I love you so much, baby."

"Love you, daddy. Be safe."

He handed her to T'Challa, and rubbed his sleeve over his eyes to dash away any emotion. "Thank you," he said, to the prince.

T'Challa inclined his head in a nod. "I will see you soon. Safe travels."

Hawkeye and Black Widow gave Allie a final wave, and got back on the quinjet.

Allie waved until the quinjet cloaked and disappeared, and then buried her face in T'Challa's shoulder. "I miss them already," she whispered.

T'Challa placed his hand on her back. "We will call them later," he promised, and carried her while he directed the Xandar refugees to follow his people. He took her to a comfortable sitting room, and a moment later, a woman with a nice smile and a motherly air walked into the room. She bowed to the prince. "This is Nila," he said, gesturing to the woman. "She will oversee your comfort here, Allie."

"Hi," Allie said, smiling at her.

"Hello, little one." Nila held out a hand. "Would you like to see your room and unpack your things?"

"Okay." Allie paused, and ran to T'Challa. She hugged him. "Thank you."

He patted the top of her head with a smile. "I could hardly turn away our little black panther, now, could I?"

She smiled at him, and went with Nila. Her smile dropped as they walked the richly decorated, but unfamiliar, corridors. Allie wished she could be at home, with the 'vengers, and wished she was old enough to help kick Thanos' butt. There was nothing she could do but wait, and she hated it.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Once I can work myself up to maybe-maybe-not some character deaths, I will be posting. Eventually. Hang in there, everybody and thanks for sticking with me!**


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N: WOO AVENGERS INFINITY WAR TRAILER! I saw it like four times and then wrote this in a frenzy. Spoilers for stuff in the trailer, and warnings for character deaths.**

Allie called her parents later that night. "How is it going?" she asked.

Clint smile at her. "So far so good, sweetheart. Vision is back-"

Vision poked his head into the camera field. "Hello, Allie."

"And the others are still trying to get the last stone," Clint finished. "Tony and Peter and Bruce are working on shielding and containment options. How are you, Allie?"

She tried not to cry. "I'm okay. I miss you a lot, but Nila is taking care of me and I had rice'n'beans'worms for dinner."

"Worms?" Natasha asked, smiling briefly.

Nila cleared her throat from behind Allie. "They are a Wakandan staple," she told the super spies.

"I wanted to try some and they were crunchy, like kettle potato chips," Allie said. "Except they don't have mustard in this country so I had to eat them with this purple sauce but it was really good. And guess what? I can sleep in a hammock!"

"That's really cool," Clint said.

Allie nodded, and then sobered. "You'll call me when something happens right?"

"We will."

Rocket barreled past, and then paused in front of the screen. "Hey, dwarf," he said cheerfully.

"Hi." Allie waved, and then her eyes narrowed. "Is that my dinosaur robot?" she asked, pointing to the metal contraption he was dragging behind him.

"I needed the lasers," Rocket replied. "You do good workmanship, dwarf." he gave her a salute and dragged the robot out of the room.

Natasha grimaced. "We'll get you a new one, baby."

"No, that's okay. I'll build one myself later."

Clint glanced back at where Sam was gesturing. "Okay, baby, we need to go," he said. "Jane needs the power grid for her satellites."

"Okay. Stay safe."

"You too sweetheart."

Allie signed off, and turned into a puppy to console herself. It didn't quite work. She looked up at Nila beseechingly.

Nila picked her up and smoothed her ruffled fur. "Come, I will take you to the kennels and you can play with the real puppies."

A~A~A~A

A day later, portals appeared in New York and the Wakandan wilderness, disgorging hordes of eight-foot tall aliens upon the world. The superheroes split to take on the foes, and the Wakandans went out en masse to fight. Allie was taken to the basements of the palace with the rest of the servants and families to hide.

Allie huddled into Nila's side. They didn't know what was happening, who was winning, or how close the alien armies had come to the city. It could be the end of the world, and they wouldn't know.

Finally, the all-clear was given, and people began to file out of the basements. The downtown city was unscathed, but further out the fields and the forests were on fire. Literally, on fire. The tired Wakandan soldiers were returning to the city, some of the Avengers in the lead.

"Mommy!" Allie broke away from Nila and ran to hug Natasha.

Natasha dropped to her knees and embraced her. "Hey, sweetheart."

"Did we win?"

"The first wave."

The ominous words made Allie pause. "What does that mean?"

"They came to weaken us," Natasha said tiredly, "test our defenses. Thanos hasn't arrived yet, and we're already tired."

"Uh-oh."

"Yeah." Natasha stood up and slipped her hand into Allie's. "Come on, sweetheart, let's go get cleaned up."

"Kay." Allie broke off to go over to Steve and Bucky and hug them. "You guys okay?" she asked.

"We're okay," Bucky assured her, scooping her up with his metal arm and kissing her forehead. He set her down.

Bruce straggled into the city, shirtless and exhausted from being the Other Guy. "Hey," he said, shrugging off a Wakandan medic. "No, I'm fine. I'm fine."

Allie held up a baked sweet potato. "Eat this. It has complex carbs."

He smiled slightly. "Thank you."

She grouped all her Avengers together and with Nila's help, guided them to the showers. "We need lots of food," she told Nila. "But not the worms. I don't think Steve or Bucky would like the worms."

"I don't think so, either."

A~A~A~A

The Avengers left the cleanup to the Fantastic Four, and removed to Wakanda with T'Challa's permission. They needed the space to fight.

Only someone who had not been empowered by the Infinity Stones could hold the gauntlet. They had it in a box while they worked on breaking the stones out of their containers. Drax was working on the Tesseract, trying to pry it open through sheer force, and Tony was trying to solve the puzzle box that was the Orb. Strange was working on the Time stone, trying to mind-ify it into revealing itself, and Jane was working on making the Aether cohesive, so it would dump out the stone. Peter and Bruce were working on Vision's forehead, trying to figure out how to take it out without giving him a lobotomy. They hadn't heard back yet from Thor about the Soul stone.

Allie hung around the labs, curious, even though they told her to stay back. She could help. She knew it. "What if we use the gauntlet to crush the cube and then put it in the knuckle bit?" Allie asked Drax.

Drax shrugged gamely. "We could try that." He put on the gauntlet, and grabbed the Tesseract with it. He squeezed with all his might.

The cube glowed brightly, and shattered, sending pieces of radioactive glass everywhere. Allie turned into a pebble to avoid the fragments, and then popped up again in human form to see what was going on.

Drax couldn't pick up the glowing blue stone to put it into the knuckle without killing himself. "We did not think this far ahead," he said nervously. "This is why Peter and Gamora shouldn't leave."

Allie frowned. "You know... if I could hold the Time stone in its container..." She reached out, and picked up the blue stone.

It tingled, like getting menthol on your fingers, and she dropped it into place hurriedly. It glowed, once, and sat there.

Drax clenched his fist reflexively, and the stone began to glow.

"No, no," Allie said, tugging at his other arm. "Take it off or you'll break something on accident."

He put it back on the stand, and announced, "We did it!"

Nobody was happy about having to use Allie as a carrier for the stones as they slowly assembled the gauntlet, but she was happy doing something to help, and the scans Bruce took didn't show anything wrong with doing it.

The only one they couldn't get was Vision's. It wasn't possible to take it out of his forehead without killing him and that simply was not an option.

So, four out of six on a gauntlet against a Mad Titan who may or may not have the Soul stone. "We've got this," Pietro said confidently.

But everyone still looked worried.

Then it happened. Only six hours after the appearance of portals, six more appeared. In Tokyo, in New York, in Sao Paulo, in Mexico City, in Shanghai, and in Moscow. And there, on the plains of Africa, a seventh portal appeared. Iron Man and War Machine headed to try and break it, to stop the portal from fully materializing. But they weren't powerful enough, and it engaged, showing them a dark wasteland of what used to be Xandar's home world.

The Mad Titan and his armies came through, undaunted by Iron Man's opening salvo. "Give them to me," he demanded of Earth's mightiest heroes, and they said no. "Then you will know what it is to lose everything," he snarled, and attacked.

Even without a single Infinity Stone, he was powerful.

Allie didn't see much more, because they were evacuating the city. Hawkeye was arranging the evac, leaving the main fight to the superpowered ones, and he had a tight hold of his daughter as they hurried out. Throngs of people surged through the streets, trying to get away from the madness.

There was a flash of light so intense it left everyone blind, and even over the chaos, Allie heard a scream that she recognized. "VISION!" she shrieked, struggling to turn around in Hawkeye's grip.

Thanos lifted the jewel with his bare hands, and placed it in his own gauntlet. One.

With the Mindstone, he could stop Wanda, Pietro. Vision lay lifeless on the ground, already defeated. Scarlet Witch stopped mid-blast and seized, prey to the visions in her mind that Thanos cast upon her. Pietro ran, ran so far and so fast he was gone within seconds.

Captain America pulled the gauntlet on, with the four stones, and met Thanos head-on.

On the fields of Wakanda, time, space, and reality twisted like a sick illusion of itself, landscapes changing and time distorting as the air itself seemed to writhe.

Allie watched as if in slow-motion (or maybe it was) as the fake gauntlet shattered under the pressure, and she let out a scream of terror as the infinity stones flew in all directions.

Iron Man plucked one out of midair, diving out of the way of an alien creature. Strange picked up the other, holding it with his quantum force. T'Challa caught the other one using Captain America's shield as a lacrosse pocket, and the other one-

The power stone flew at the panicked civilians as they ran. If it hit them, it would be over.

Allie jerked out of her father's grasp, turned into a dragon, and caught it in her claws before it could hit Nila. She tumbled to the ground thirty feet away in a clear spot, and transformed back into herself, still holding the power stone in her grasp. "Daddy!" she cried, scared, as her hands began to glow purple, sensing her adrenaline surge. "What do I do with it!?"

Thanos saw the little girl holding the orb, and grinned. He batted War Machine out of the way like a fruit fly, and marched forward. He directed a beam of energy at the power stone to call it into his gauntlet. The little girl who was holding it began to dissolve.

Allie saw Thanos, saw his grin, and saw a bright light. That was all she knew, and then everything stopped.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Remember the doctrine of Marvel, and I'll see you in a couple of days for the next chapter.**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: End of Infinity Wars! Be brave!**

"ALLIE!" Hawkeye's anguished scream rang through the comms, and everyone _knew_ what had happened as they saw the archer go into battle with a calm-eyed ferocity. Natasha's psyche shut down on realizing her daughter was gone - she was all Black Widow now, cold-hearted steel and electricity.

Thanos knew he had struck a blow, and pressed his advantage. He smote Captain America where he stood, leaving his still body in his wake as he pressed forward. The Winter Soldier (not Steve! his inner voice cried, but was ruthlessly suppressed) scooped up the battered shield and kept fighting.

Iron Man saw Spider-man go down under a wave of alien soldiers, and knew that without a miracle, the Earth was lost.

The miracle came in a flash of multi-colored light and a Nordic stamp in the grass. Thor, Loki, Peter, and Gamora stood there, looking triumphant. Two seconds later, as they took in the damage and the battle, they sprung into action. The two Guardians of the Galaxy plunged into the fray, and Thor brought the silver pyramid out from his cape. He put in his earpiece. "I have the soul stone," he said. "Who has the gauntlet?"

"Thanos has the only one," Iron Man replied grimly, dodging a blast of pure unadulterated Time. The ground underneath him vaporized.

"Then we must take it from him," Thor said grimly. "Where is Allie? I will fly the pyramid to her so we can use this stone."

Iron Man couldn't reply.

T'Challa took up the comm. "She's dead," he said, and tore into another alien. "Set it in the cannon and we can-"

Thanos' power took out Wakanda's pulse cannon a second later. "Never mind."

"There's no time," Iron Man said, and Tony's futurist brain ran the calculations, ran the math, the risks, and the rewards. "Give it to me."

"What are you going to-"

Iron Man swooped down and plucked the pyramid from Thor's hands, twisting it open to reveeal the glowing orange stone. He picked it up, and shoved it into the arc reactor of the suit. He shuddered as the suit supercharged, and concentrated.

They watched in amazement as Iron Man directed a unibeam of energy at Captain America's lifeless body, recalling his soul and reviving him instantly. Spider-man gasped with life under the pile of dead aliens. As Iron Man turned the unibeam to Thanos' forehead, he willed with all his might that Allie would be alive and safe at the end of this.

Thanos was mesmerized by the power of the Soul stone as he gazed into the depths of the beam, the Iron Man suit crumbling around it. Thanos' hands fell limp at his sides as he envisioned all the death that would make his Mistress proud...

The gauntlet slipped from his grasp just as Iron Man died, and the stone tumbled from the crumbling wisps of the suit.

Captain America raced forward to pick up the gauntlet, and with a roar of anger, Hulk plucked the soul stone from the air and threw it at Cap. "END THIS!" he howled angrily.

And Captain America did just so. He brought the Infinity Stones to bear upon the one who would think to wield them, and froze the Mad Titan in his tracks, preparing to either crush him or throw him to the ends of the universe.

A giant hand reached out from the sky, and plucked Thanos off the ground.

Like some cheesy cartoon, everyone stopped, and everyone's heads swiveled up to stare at the sky.

There stood a man, or rather, a humanoid-shaped being, twenty-two thousand feet tall: a mountain of a god walking amongst mortals. "I'll take it from here," the being informed them kindly.

Captain America blinked, and then called upwards, "Where are you taking him?"

"To a place where he won't harm anyone in the name of his mistress," the being replied. "He won't be bothering you again. This planet is far too interesting, and needs further development. If you were able to defeat him, you must be kept alive."

"Who are you?" Cap asked, squinting to try and see the being's face.

The being chuckled, and the sonic boom that resulted tipped over a skyscraper. "I am The One Above All," he declared, "brother to the one you recognize as Ego."

"A Celestial," Star Lord breathed in surprise.

"And the Gauntlet?" Cap asked.

The being waved a hand. "No, no, you take that. We have high hopes of you humans." He disappeared in a shimmer of white light, and was gone.

No one on the battlefield remembered anything about him.

Captain America blinked at the empty space. "Thanos is gone," he said into his comm, and closed his eyes against the surge of power that rose from the Gauntlet. "I think, I can fix everything."

"Do it," Thor said.

Iron Man was ressurected. Scarlet Witch was freed from her mental prison. Vision was given back consciousness, but without the trappings of the Mind stone. One after the other, people were brought back into realitty and given back their minds and souls, and the time they had lost. As Steve healed the city, and used the power of the Infinity Stones on the whole world, people began to report their legs growing back, their vision returning, their developmental disabilties disappearing, their mental illnesses vanishing. Peter's Celestial genes reappeared in his DNA. And the cities ravaged by the portals stood whole once again.

Steve's mind wandered back to Peggy, too soon gone, and his old friends. He could easily bring them back here, to live in the present-

Bucky dared to reach out and touch his arm. "That's good Stevie," he said quietly, his voice rough with emotion, "you did good. You're done."

Steve's eyes glowed with power. "Don't you want your life back, Buck?" he asked, his voice otherworldy with power.

"No," Bucky said quietly, "I'm good."

Steve nodded slowly, and dropped his arm, relaxing his hand. The stones dimmed, and one by one, fell out of the Gauntlet, inactive, on the floor.

Steve's eyes rolled back, and he crumpled.

Bucky caught him before he could hit hte ground. "MEDIC!" he roared, pressing his human hand to Steve's neck. He caught the steady heartbeat, and slumped in relief. "Idiot," he murmured into Steve's hair as he bowed his head, the adrenaline leaving him in a rush.

Tony Stark rolled out of his suit, feeling both exhilarated and traumatized, and grabbed Peter Parker in a hug. "Don't do that again," he scolded, half-laughing in relief.

"I won't," Peter promised, hugging the older man tightly.

Hawkeye ignored the cheers of the civilians and the Wakandan soldiers, and raced through the city. "Allie!" he called, searching for the little girl desperately. "Allie!"

"TINY!" Hulk bellowed, joining in the search. "TINY BABY VENGER!"

She was not in the city.

A~A~A~A

Halfway across the world, Pietro woke up from his daze, the power of the Mindstone no longer driving him. He lay on the ground for a moment, gathering strength, and then he reversed course, heading for Wakanda. He didn't know what was happening, but he needed to be there for Wanda, who, in his head, sounded distressed.

A~A~A~A

Allie woke up in an alley. She blinked at the dirty floor for a few moments, and then carefully sat up. She glanced around for any of the Avengers, and on finding herself alone, ventured into the street. Avengers Tower gleamed proudly a few blocks away.

A woman rushing past paused, and glanced at the filthy child. "Oh, you poor kid, did you lose your parents in the rush?" she asked.

"The rush?" Allie asked, dazed. "What rush? Where are we?"

"The aliens are gone and the city is fixed!" the woman said cheerfully. She held out a hand. "My name's Esther. Come with me and I'll take you to the police station."

"Um, no, that's okay." Allie pointed to the Tower. "That's where I live."

"Really?"

"Really. Thank you, though." Allie turned into a bird, and fluttered away above the crowds. She flew to the front door, turned herself back into a girl, and went inside. She went up to the front desk. "Happy Hogan please," she said.

The receptionist knew her. "Allie?" she asked, standing up and coming around to the front. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't know," Allie said honestly. "What's going on? Did we win?"

The receptionist grinned and hugged her. "We won, honey. Come on, I'll take you up."

They went up to the common room, and Allie said, "FRIDAY, call my dad."

"Allie!" FRIDAY said, shocked. "Where did you come from?"

"Outside," Allie replied, going into the kitchen. "I don't really know what's going on but I'm starving." She opened the fridge and took out a slice of cold pizza. "Can you call the Avengers?"

"I'm putting you on comms," FRIDAY decided.

Allie spoke up. "Guys? Daddy?"

On the other side of the world, Hawkeye dropped his bow. "Allie?" he whispered, not daring to believe it.

"Allie, is that you?" Tony asked, eyes widening.

"It's me," Allie said. "I don't know what's going on."

"Where are you?" Clint demanded hoarsely, grabbing for Natasha. She clung to him, shuddering with relief. "Baby? Where are you? We'll come get you."

"I'm at the Tower," Allie said. "I woke up in that alley where you found me and I came home. I'm eating pizza. Did we win?"

Clint broke into tears of relief. "Yeah, we won," he choked, wiping at his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Is, is everyone okay?" Allie asked hesitantly. "Mommy? Steve? Everybody?"

The Avengers and assorted associates sounded off one by one, almost delirious with relief. "How did you get all the way over there?" Wanda asked.

Tony spoke up. "I think that was me. When I had the Soul stone, I wanted Allie to be alive, and safe."

"So you sent her home," Rhodey said, slinging an arm around him in a hug.

Allie felt something go wibbly in her stomach. "I died?" she asked quietly.

Everyone froze. "Uh..."

"Lots of us died, dwarf, get over it," Rocket said irritably. "You're fine now."

Groot smacked him upside the head. "I am Groot," he scolded.

"Listen to me, Allie, _malyshka_ , listen," Natasha said. "You're fine, baby. We're all fine, okay?"

Loki poked at Dr. Strange. "Get her over here, _now_ ," he whispered harshly.

Strange shrugged him off and opened a portal. "Allie, young one, get into the portal and you'll be here in one second," he said over comms.

Allie took a leap of faith - and ended up in Clint's arms. "Daddy!" She hugged him tightly. She wasn't exactly sure how to handle being dead and then alive again, so she started crying.

The waterworks in general started, as Clint and Natasha were crying, Steve

Bleedingheart Rogers started crying happy tears that everyone was alive, Peter started crying because he was overexhausted, and poor Mantis started crying because everyone else was crying.

The Wakandans took care of everything, and in the aftermath of the Infinity Wars, the Avengers finally got to vacation in Wakanda.

Allie was given the dubious distinction of joining the Coulson club - revived by sheer willpower.

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Hope you enjoyed my take on the Infinity Wars! Stay tuned for more chapters!**


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: Hello! This chapter: very, very brief epilogue to the previous two chapters, to round off Infinity Wars. The following conversation can be held by** ** _anybody your heart desires_** **. It's a choose-your-own-character conversation.**

"So, what are we going to do about the Infinity Stones?"

"That's the million dollar question."

"I am Groot."

"No. That's a bad idea."

"They should stay on Earth. Here, you have enough people to defend them if necessary."

"Good point."

Thus, the Illuminati was formed.

 **A/N 2: It felt weird sticking that at the top of my next chapter. Anywho, from here, we're going to skip forward several years and do snapshots into Allie's life a bit further spaced apart. I am still working on this, I promise :)**


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N: Toldcha.**

"Dad?"

"Yes baby?"

"I've decided I'm going to save the world like Moana."

Clint blinked at his daughter. She was twelve years old now, and had by no means outgrown her love of Disney princesses, but that was out of left field, even for her. "Okay?" he said. "How...?"

"Well, like Maui, actually."

He thought back to the movie. "By shapeshifting and a magic hook?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "I guess we could make that happen?"

Allie giggled and hugged him. "No, dad. What would a real lizard or a real hawk do against an actual villain? I mean, he uses the qualities of those creatures to aid him. So, I've decided to go into bio-mimetics. As a career."

Clint sighed in relief. "Okay. That actually makes sense."

She held out a form. "So, I've decided to apply to MIT. Tony's gonna be my sponsor."

Clint eyed the form like it was a snake. It was a college application. "Baby, you're twelve."

"I know." She continued to hold it out patiently.

"Did... you talk to your mom about this?"

"She said to ask you."

He literally felt the world dissolving under his feet. His baby, in college? No way Natasha would agree to that. "Why?" he asked suspiciously.

She giggled. "So we could get that on video. FRIDAY!" She ran away before he could process that.

"Hey!" He chased after her, and found her safe in the circle of Tony, Steve, Bucky, and Natasha.

"Heeyyy dad, how's life?" she greeted him, giving him a smile that matched Steve's at his most aw-shucks.

Clint scowled at her and all the grownups. "My own team," he said, giving a disappointed sigh. "I am too old to be getting scares like that."

"Seriously though, I took the PSAT and I could get in to MIT in like a year or so," Allie said, and hid behind Bucky.

Clint groaned. "Are you serious?"

Natasha wrapped an arm around his waist and kissed him. "Clint, you knew we were raising a smart kid."

"Smart?" Tony said, insulted. "I educated her in circuit boards when she was five. She is way past smart! She is a genius."

"I'm not as smart as you," Allie pointed out.

"Baby, no one is as smart as me."

"Except for Bruce," Steve pointed out.

"And Reed," Bucky added.

"And T'Challa," Allie continued. The Black Panther was one of her favorite people of all time.

"And Stephen Strange," Steve said.

"And Steve," Bucky said, digging an elbow into his best friend's side.

"And Steve," Allie echoed triumphantly. Steve was still her number three favorite.

Tony shook his head. "Fine. Besides those six people, no one's as smart as me. But you're a genius too. Mid-range, I'd say. And you could totally start college at thirteen."

Natasha put an arm around Allie. "Here's a thought. Pre-requisite classes, but online. That way you can stay with us. How's that?"

Allie hugged her. "That sounds great."

"Good." Natasha kissed her hair. "So we're all agreed? College?" She looked at Clint.

"Yeah. Sure. Online only."

"Cool!" Allie hugged him tightly and ran down the hall, shouting, "I'm gonna go tell Pepper! She said she'd write me a reference!"

They all watched her go with a grin. "She's growing up way too fast," Clint sighed.

Steve patted him on the shoulder. "She'll be fine, Clint."

"Oh I know. My baby can do anything she sets her mind to."

A~A~A~A

Allie Barton-Romanoff started online pre-requisite classes at NYU the next semester. She could be found squirrelled away in any corner of the Avengers complex, nose in a tablet as she worked and studied and passed her tests.

Tony, Peter, and Bruce spent a lot of time teaching their favorite youngster the things in her online classes. She absorbed it all like a sponge, now that it really mattered, and built her own little models for the entrance to the grad program.

A~A~A~A

Bucky woke up from a post-mission nap feeling like someone was watching him. He opened his eyes, and found Allie standing on his left side, scanner in hand, her eyes half an inch from his arm. He cleared his throat and she let out a startled 'meep!' "You scared me!" she complained.

"What are you doing, doll?" he asked.

She held up the scanner. "I'm looking at your arm."

"Why?"

"Tony based it on an elephant trunk. I have to find a practical real-world example of bio-mimetics."

"Doesn't he have the schematics to this arm?"

"The professor said it was cheating if I used them. I have to build my own based on my observations." She gave him puppy eyes. "Please can you do some stuff with your arm and I'll watch you?"

Bucky sighed. "Fine."

"Yay thank you Buck!" She kissed his cheek. "Can you flex?"

The long-sffuering soldier went through the motions, following Allie's instructions. Finally he sighed. He recognied that look on her face. "Okay, new plan. How about I just take this off and you can tinker with it?"

She gaped at him. "Really? You'll let me?"

"All I'm doin' is napping, kiddo, why not?"

She helped him release it from the shoulder joint and he put it on the coffee table.

"Okay, go crazy, just, put it back together how you found it, okay?"

"I promise, Bucky."

"Cool." He threw his other arm over his eyes and went back to sleep on the sofa.

Rhodey entered hte room an hour later, and blinked. "Allie?"

"Yeah?" She didn't look up from prying open a plate on the arm.

"What are you doing with Bucky's arm?"

"Studying it."

"Does Bucky know you're studying it?"

"Yeah, he's right there." She pointed absently with the screwdriver.

Rhodey went over to look at his teammate. "He's just asleep, right?" he asked warily.

Allie gave him an insulted look. "I didn't knock him out, Rhodey, I just asked. Only mom knocks people out with poisons. He's just napping."

"Trying to nap," Bucky mumbled. "Quiet."

"All right, all right, I'm just checking." Rhodey ruffled her hair. "Carry on, cricket."

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: Thank you for sticking with me, as RL gets more and more complicated! I am still writing this story, as well as a few others that are inching towards publication on this site :) Here's to caffeine!**


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: I'm not dead. Have some college.**

A year passed. Allie was admitted into the undergrad program at MIT for bio-mechanical engineering, but she had to be on-campus to take her classes. Clint and Natasha took a sabbatical from working with the Avengers, and the Barton-Romanoff family moved to Boston, Massachusetts. Tony had a house there, (of course), and he let them rent it, on the condition that the rest of the team could come up and see them (read: Allie) on weekends and holidays.

"You'd think we were divorcing the team," Clint muttered to his wife, as the others started to draw up a visitor's roster on the calendar.

Natasha snorted. "I think if Steve goes three days without mothering somebody he's gonna start mothering the twins again and Wanda'll put him through the wall on purpose."

A~A~A~A

Allie's first week on campus, her mom came with her so she could find all her classes and talk to all her teachers. The professors were thrilled to have a Stark-sponsored prodigy in their classes. Everyone else, all the students, just stared at her and at her mom, and snickered. Allie remembered what Tony had told her, and ignored them.

The second week, she asked her parents if she could go alone. "I think, I need to do this by myself," she told them.

Clint and Natasha shared a glance, and nodded. "If you feel like you can handle it, sure," Clint said.

She hugged him. "Thanks, dad."

He kissed her hair. "Any sign of trouble and we'll be there, okay?" he said.

"I know."

So the next day, Clint walked her to the edge of the campus, and she walked to her first class by herself.

Clint went around the side entrance, found a nice quiet corner, and turned on his tablet. The school's camera feeds came up, courtesy of FRIDAY, and Hawkeye settled down to keep an eye on his kid.

Everything was going great until Allie got to the second class. It was a lab class.

"Everyone pick a partner, and we'll get started on disassembling these babies," the professor said.

There were thirty-one people in the class. Thirty of them shared a glance, pointedly ignoring the thirteen-year-old, and paired up. Allie was left alone. She bit her lip, lifted her chin, and climbed onto the chair to start the project.

The professor sighed. "Guys, really, you're gonna leave the smallest engineer without a partner?"

"She's a prodigy, she's fine," one of the students said dismissively.

Allie narrowed her eyes. "Yeah. I'm fine, professor."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"All right."

Allie ignored the other pairs, and reached for the toolkit. She did this kind of stuff all the time, with stuff that was way more high-tech. Except she wasn't strong enough to pull that bolt apart... She didn't want to ask for help from any of the guys in her class. They were laughing at her, thinking she couldn't hear.

She looked at the tools on her table. If she had some time, she could rig a big enough lever to give her the force necessary to pull it apart. Or... She glanced around. No one was watching her.

Allie shapeshifted her muscles briefly, just long enough to force the wrench to turn on the bolt, and break it apart. She shifted back to regular size just as the bolt clattered to the floor.

Everyone turned to stare at her.

She blushed. "I got it," she said, smiling at them.

The professor squinted at her. "Yes, you do," he said.

Allie smiled smugly and kept working.

Her next class was Applied Mathematics. It was easy enough, and Allie set to calculating with vigor. She didn't have FRIDAY to double-check her calculations, so she had to go back and mkae sure that she was doing it right. That was something she hadn't expected.

"Having trouble?" the girl next to her asked quietly, giving her a small smile.

Allie looked up at her. The girl was nineteen, maybe, with a TARDIS t-shirt and long, straight hair. "No, I'm good," she said. "I'm just double-checking my work because I don't have a computer."

"Oh that's a good idea," the girl said, grimacing. "I'm Eden, by the way."

"Allie," the small shapeshifter replied.

Eden grinned at her. "I like your hair."

Allie blushed. This morning she'd decided to shift her hair color from its usual brown to streaks of silver like Pietro's. "Thanks," she said.

"My mom won't let me," Eden sighed.

"You live at home?" Allie asked cautiously.

"Yeah. We live not far from here." She gave ALlie a curious look. "You too, right? I think I remember your mom from last week."

"Yeah."

Eden nodded. "Your mom is super pretty."

Allie grinned. "She's the best."

"Good. Hey, for this problem, what did you get?"

Allie compared notes with her, and was embarrassed when she discovered she'd misplaced a decimal. "Ugh, I really miss FR- my, computer," she sighed.

Eden gave her a kind smile. "Wait until the second module, we'll get to use our tablets and laptops then. My friend took this class last term, and he told me."

"Oh, cool." Allie smiled at her shyly. "Thanks."

"No problem."

At the end of class, Eden paused before heading out. "Hey, uh, do you have lunch in your bag? Or, is your mom gonna come get you? I don't mean to be like, weird, but, you're kinda small to be alone."

Allie spotted her dad hovering outside the classroom. "No, that's my dad, we're gonna eat lunch together. I have two hours of break."

"Oh, okay, good. See you later, Allie." Eden gave her a wave, and headed out.

Clint waited for Allie to walk up to him. "Who was that?" he asked.

"Eden. She's really nice."

"Good."

Allie glanced up at him. "You were watching me, weren't you?"

"Yup."

"You already know everything about her, don't you?"

"Yup." He ruffled her hair, ignoring her glare. "Let's go eat lunch, kiddo."

A~A~A~A

Steve came by the next week to see how they were doing. He brought hugs from the rest of the team, cookies, and a special two-in-one SI laptop with FRIDAY on-call instead of the standard AI. "Tony sends his greetings," he told Allie, handing her the gift-wrapped present.

Allie unwrapped it, and beamed. "Thank you thank you!"

Steve accepted the eager hug, and kissed her hair. "I'm just the delivery boy, but you're welcome."

A~A~A~A

As college classes came and went, Eden became Allie's Rhodey. She took the small teenager under her wing, showed her the quietest spots for studying and working, and introduced her to the members of the Robotics Club, which Allie promptly joined.

After running a full background check on Eden and spying on her and her family for two weeks, Allie's parents allowed her to invite Eden to the house. Allie waited on the steps outside for her.

"This is Tony Stark's house," Eden said, stunned, when she got out of the cab.

"Yup," Allie said cheerfully. "We're renting it."

"Are your parents millionaires?" Eden asked, hastily smoothing her hair.

"Nope." Allie opened the door, and ushered her inside. "Mom, dad, this is Eden. We have Applied Math together."

Clint held out a hand. "Nice to meet you. This is my wife Natasha, and I'm Clint."

Eden's eyes widened as she shook his hand. "Wait..." She took a step back. "Wait, you're Avengers."

"Yes we are."

Eden glanced from Allie to her parents and back again. "Wait, so... what? Allie, you're a superhero?"

"Not yet," Allie told her. "I still have to finish college."

Eden gave a disbelieving laugh. "Oh. Uh, it's nice to meet you. Thanks for saving the planet and stuff."

"You're welcome," Natasha said, smiling at the awestruck young woman.

"Who's your favorite?" Clint asked, ushering both girls into the living room.

Eden blushed. "Um..."

"Daaaad," Allie complained, "you said you were gonna be coool."

"Right. Sorry." Clint cleared his throat. "I'll just go shoot stuff." He nodded to Eden, and headed out of the room.

"So you girls can study in the living room, and I'll get out of your hair," Natasha said smoothly. "Allie, tell me when you get hungry and we'll get Thai food, okay?"

"Okay mom." Allie led Eden to the living room. "Oh, ignore the dog. I'm updating his software."

Eden blinked at the robot dog sitting in the corner, plugged into a laptop. "Okay. Cool."

A~A~A~A

 **A/N 2: If anyone has any scenes they'd like to see of Allie (and Eden maybe) at MIT, or coming home on the weekends, or stuff, let me know. Thanks for sticking with me!**


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N: Eden meets pupper!Allie**

It was the second term at MIT that Eden found out Allie was a shapeshifter. Eden was passing by Allie's house on her way to a movie, and decided to stop and say hi to Allie and her parents (and maybe see if Thor was there - she liked Thor).

The front door swung open when Eden knocked. She poked her head in cautiously. "Hello?" she called. "Your door's open!"

"Come on in, Eden!" called Clint's voice from somewhere upstairs. "Allie's in the backyard, just go through!"

"Thanks!" Eden walked through the house to the backyard. She looked around for the girl, and found a beautiful Golden Retriever running around in the backyard. "Allie? You out here?"

The dog stopped running and stared at her.

If Eden didn't know better she'd say the dog looked shocked. "Hi, doggy," Eden said nervously. "Nice doggo. I hope you're a nice doggo. I didn't even know Allie had a dog."

The dog shuffled through the grass nervously, and sped around Eden back into the house.

"Ookayyy..." Eden followed the dog back into the house. "Uh..." She heard voices upstairs.

Allie's voice, "Mom, mom, what do I do?" She sounded frantic.

"It's okay, malyshka," the door closed.

Eden stood there awkwardly in the living room, wondering what was going on. "Okay, gotta go, bye!" she called up the stairs, and headed for the front door.

Clint clattered down the stairs at an impressive speed. "Hang on," he said, holding out a hand. "Uh, give Allie a minute. Hi, how are you doing, Eden?"

"I'm fine," Eden said, shaking his hand. "Uh, when'd you guys get a dog?"

He gave her a small smile. "Oh, you know." He put his hands in his pockets. "How's your semester going?"

"Um, pretty good. I'm not sure about my teacher for..." She trailed off as Allie and Natasha came downstairs, Allie holding her mother's hand tightly. "Hey, Allie."

"Hi," Allie said, giving her a nervous half-wave. "Um..."

Eden frowned. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Natasha said calmly. "Allie needs to tell you something."

"I was gonna show you later for our building project," Allie said, twisting her hands, "because we needed a lot of strength for that one thing, but, I wasn't expecting you, so..."

Eden raised her eyebrows expectantly. "So..."

"So I'm a mutant," Allie blurted, and hugged herself tightly. "I'm a shapeshifter."

Eden's jaw dropped. "So, wait, the dog... you were the dog?"

Allie nodded silently.

Eden put a hand over her mouth, frowning. "This isn't a prank?" she asked.

"Nope." Allie shuffled her feet. "Watch." She changed into the Golden Retriever, and then back into herself. "See?"

Eden's jaw dropped again. "Okay... that's so cool!" She grinned at her lab partner. "You are so totally a superhero! Why didn't you tell me before? Were you nervous? I'm so sorry I caught you by surprise, I didn't mean to freak you out. What other things can you turn into?" She took a deep breath. "Okay, wait, sorry, I'm being weird." She took another deep breath. "That's so cool, Allie."

Clint and Natasha were beaming at her. "See, Allie?" Clint said, hugging his daughter. "Everything's cool."

Allie beamed at Eden in relief. "Thanks. And yeah, I can turn into some cool stuff. I can turn into a dragon."

"AWESOME. Can you show me? Wait, can I ask? Is that rude?"

Allie's smile widened. "No, you're good. Okay, this is my favorite kind of dragon..."

Needless to say, Eden skipped the movie. People stranded on a mountain had nothing on a real-life shapeshifting lab partner.

 **A/N 2: Hope you enjoyed! Also, what'd y'all think of Infinity War? I saw it twice and cried on the second time even though I was expecting everything, lol**


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N: The author liiiiivessss! Hehe. Hi. Have some action.**

Allie's phone rang. She was on the other side of the gym, doing stretches with Natasha. "Buck, can you get it?" she called.

Bucky put down his bottle of water and picked up hte phone. "Allie Barton's phone," he said politely.

There was a startled silence on the other end, and then a tentaive, "Uh, can I talk to her? This is Eden."

"It's Eden!" Bucky hollered, holding the phone away from his ear.

Allie made grabby-hands.

Bucky smoothly tossed her the phone.

Allie jumped off the floor and caught it. "hi Eden," she said cheerfully, watching Steve smack his friend upside the head for throwing a state-of-the-art Starkphone. "No I'm not busy. Uh-huh. Yeah. Do you wanna come over instead? No, just Steve and Bucky. Uh-huh." She glanced at her mom and whispered, "Her family's having a huge party and she needs to study, can she come here?"

Natasha nodded.

"Yeah, mom says it's okay. Yeah. Okay. Ook, okay. See you." Allie hung up. "She's bringing lasagna."

"Nice."

Allie scooted forward and hugged her. "Thanks mom."

Natasha smirked. "Don't thank me yet, sweetheart. Let's see if she can concentrate with these two here."

It was Steve that answered the door when Eden rang the bell. She blushed instantly. "Um, hi," she said, "I'm Eden."

He gave her a smile and relieved her of the two pans of lasagna. "Pleasure to meet you, we've heard a lot about you. My name is Steve."

She choked back a giggle. "I, um, okay." She set her backpack down with a loud 'thump'.

He eyed it with a grimace. "I should've offered to get the bag," he said, hefting the two pans.

Eden shrugged. "I'm used to it."

Allie skidded around the corner. "Hi! Ooh, lasagna. Oh, you've already met Steve, good. This is Bucky." She gestured to the man coming around the corner.

Eden's eyes went to the metal arm. "Cool."

Both men chuckled. "That's an engineer's voice," Steve said knowingly.

Turns out, Eden did manage to study in spite of watching Captain America and hte Winter Soldier watch Doctor Who with Allie and remark on whether or not the TARDIS could actually be infinite. She would have never thought the two men out of time would be such, well, nerds. Then again...

A~A~A~A

Bucky ate an entire pan of lasagna by himself, and earned a punch in the arm by the Black Widow. He didn't mind.

A~A~A~A

In a school full of geniuses in a world full of superheroes, there was always something exciting going on. So really no one was surrpised when someone in Astrophysics accidentally opened a portal to another dimension, releasing dinosaurs with dart guns.

Allie was only one building away and she was the only one that didn't panic when the lockdown alert went off. She cralwed under her desk, shrank slightly to fit more comfortably, and called her dad. "Hey dad."

"Hey Allie, what's up?"

"There's lizards attacking the school. I think we need the Avengers. And Dr. Reed."

Clint took a deep breath. "Okay. Are you safe?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Hold tight, baby, we're on our way."

Allie looked over at Eden, who was biting her lip. "Just don't panic," Allie advised the older girl. "Panicking does nothing. I've tried it."

"Sure, Allie," Eden said, forcing a small smile. "What do we do?"

"Stay put," Allie said. "Hawkeye and Black Widow will be here, ASAP."

Eden rested her chin on her knees. "I can do that."

A blast from outside made the walls shudder, and a few pieces of plaster came crashing down. Allie ducked and covered Eden, turning into an armadillo for protection. She reformed after the shaking stopped, and winced when there was another blast. "Okay, never mind. We're too close, we need to move." Allie grabbed her backpack, and picked up her phone. "FRIDAY, do you have cameras?"

"I do," her phone replied, startling Eden. "You are clear down the south corridor."

"Thanks, FRIDAY. Okay, Eden, let's go!" Allie shuffled out from under the desk, and bolted for the door, Eden on her heels. She poked her head out, confirmed the south corridor was clear, and they ran for it.

"Turn right," FRIDAY told them as they reached the end of the corridor.

Allie and Eden bolted out of the building and took shelter behind a pillar. Everyone else was screaming and running in random directions. The lizards were starting to rampage outwards.

"Okay," Allie said, "FRIDAY, suggestions?"

"If you reach the parking lot, you can borrow a car," FRIDAY said.

"You can drive, right?" Allie asked her friend, eyes darting this way and that as she tried to figure out which direction to go.

"Um, yeah." Eden stared in horror as two lizards started coming towards them, shooting.

"Okay, cool. Black sedan, second row, over there by that one tree. We're gonna zig-zag run and duck behind every cover, okay? And then we're gonna get in the other side of the car, and leave," Allie said, pointing to the car and tugging Eden further behind a pillar.

"Wait, we're gonna steal a car?" Eden hissed.

"Priorities," Allie hissed back. "Let's go!"

They started running. Allie made her legs longer to compensate and kept a firm hold on Eden's arm, dragging her this way and that as they dodged for cover. They made it to the car and Allie pulled them to the far side of it.

"Okay, FRIDAY, hack it."

The lock clicked open a moment later. Eden got in the driver's seat as teh car started on its own, and Allie crawled into the passenger seat. "Where am I going?" Eden asked, wheeling out of the parking space slowly, trying not to attract the lizards' attention.

Allie's nose pressed up against the glass as she stared at the lizards. "They're rounding 'em up," she muttered, eyes widening. "I think they're gonna take those students hostage! Eden stop the car! Stay here! Wait, no, just go!"

"What! Allie! Your mom's gonna kill me!" Eden screeched in panic as Allie jumped out of the car.

Allie ignored her and turned into a low-flying blue jay, trying to figure out a way to draw the lizards away. They were hissing and shrieking in their own language, communicating with each other. Wait...

She dropped to the ground and turned into a smaller version of the lizards. She started running towards the far end of the quad, where there were no students. And then she started shrieking in the universal language of "MOM HELP!"

The lizards reacted as if shot, and half of them took off after her, calling after her.

Allie ducked around the corner and turned into a tiny hawk, shooting over the top of the building and looking for another way to distract the rest of them. She landed, and spotted a fire extinguisher. Better than nothing? Sure. She blamed her dad's "everything is a weapon" training, and grabbed it.

She came around the corner firing white chemical foam at the closest lizards in a sweeping motion, screaming, "RUN! RUN!" at the paralyzed grad students.

The students scattered, and the lizards converged on her. One of them got off a clear shot, and Allie felt a dull thud in her chest a moment later. She ignored it and continued spraying, retreating around the corner.

Five seconds later, the Avengers swooped in with suitable dramatics.

Allie dropped the fire extinguisher and ran for cover.

Sam dropped down in front of her, his wings folding. "I saw you get hit," he said, sounding both panicked and calm. "Let me see." He pushed aside her sweater to check for injuries and pulled a dart from her shirt. "Oh, shoot, get a medic!" he hollered into comms.

Allie tugged her shirt collar down, and frowned. "I wasn't hit," she said. "Huh." Her necklace, the vibranium one from Wakanda, had a slight dent in the pendant. "I think it hit the necklace..." she held out the pendant for inspection. "Look, Sam. I'm good. T'Challa's dad's present saved me."

He looked it over, and sank back onto his heels with a sigh of relief. "Cancel medic," he said. "Allie's fine." He looked at her. "What were you thinking?"

"To save them," she said, pointing at the kids being herded away by Bruce and Pietro.

Sam scooped her up in a hug. "You're crazy, kiddo." He covered their exit to the quinjet, making a detour to pick up Eden. "Wait here, Allie." He went off to help get the last lizard stragglers.

Eden grabbed her in a hug. She was laugh-crying. "You're insane," she choked, squeezing Allie tightly. "And that was awesome."

"Please don't encourage her," Coulson said, from the cockpit of the jet.

"I couldn't just sit there," Allie said, offended.

He kissed her forehead. "I know." He winked at her. "That was good work."

Allie beamed.

The lizards were rounded up and ushered back through their portal with a stern warning from Captain America. The Avengers regrouped at the quinjet, and Hawkeye and Black Widow proceeded to smother their child in half-relief, half-scolding praise.

Allie just grinned at her parents. "It was good though, right?" she asked.

Clint kissed her cheek. "Yes. Next time, please just run in the opposite direction."

"Okay dad," Allie said demurely.

Bucky snorted. "Right. She's almost as bad as Stevie following that rule."

Natasha met her daughter's gaze. "If you're not going to listen, then you're going to train every day so you can have the skills to survive and help others," she warned.

Allie threw her arms around her mom. "Yes! I mean, yes. Absolutely. I will not listen to dad."

Clint sighed. "I am getting too old for this."

Eden stared at them all in fascination. "You're all nuts."

"Shh," Pietro said, winking at her. "Don't tell the press."

Eden blushed.

Wanda smacked her twin.

A~A~A~A

The next day at school, everyone was talking about the awesome shapeshifter who'd saved forty kids from the alien lizards. Allie and Eden just smiled.

A~A~A~A


End file.
